Surf Story
by MGMK
Summary: Re-post. Another one I've been working on. People seem to like it, maybe you will too.
1. Introduction

Sunrise. It had always been her favorite time of day – a time to relax, reflect, re-everything. A lot had changed for Spencer Carlin over the last month or so. She'd switched coasts and switched career paths. Indeed, it was not a good day when Spencer decided to tell her parents about her life's ambitions.

"No. No way. Absolutely not," Paula was saying, no room for misinterpretation.

"Honestly, sweetie," he dad agreed, "Have you thought this through all the way? I mean, where are you going to live? How are you going to make a living?"

"Dad, I'm sure I can find a place with the money I have saved up and you get paid for winning competitions," the blonde maintained.

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to just abandon the idea of school, especially if you're gonna be so far away from us," her father continued. "You have to think logically, Spencer."

"Arthur, there is nothing logical about trying to make a living off of riding around on some floating piece of foam,"

"It doesn't really matter what you guys say. I'm 18 and I've already made my decision. This is what I want to do,"

"I don't care," Paula said. "You aren't going."

"I am,"

"You aren't,"

She did.

Now she was in Los Angeles, living with her brother…Glen. The one stipulation of her parents she agreed to. She'd thought it'd be hell at first but having Glen around turned out to be a life-saver. There are a lot of weirdoes in la-la-Land. After a long road trip, and an even longer apartment hunt, they found a relatively small little studio apartment, close to the beach and a Starbucks (thank God); the perfect location for an upstart professional surfer. It'd taken a while to get used to but after adding a few choice pieces of furniture and hanging stuff on the walls she could call this little cramped cut-out piece of real-estate home.

Now, though, it was the morning of her first ever professional competition. And, while she was elated, there was no hiding her nerves. She glanced away from the window of the poster hanging over her dresser – Team KaTo. They were her idols. She'd been dreaming of some day being able to ride the same waves as them, now that was about to happen. Yeah, in her first ever professional comp she was going against one of the greatest: the Ashley Davies.

**Meanwhile…**

Madison got up, trying not to trip on all the…well, stuff that was in the hallway. She passed by the open door of her younger roommate, noting the semi-grunting sounds with an eye roll. Apparently, Aiden decided to stay over last night. But that wasn't where she was headed. Now she had a bone to pick with the other sister.

"Ashley!"

The smaller girl jolted upright then crumpled back down as her head swimming protested that movement. "What the fuck, Madison?" she croaked out, only barely registering the voice.

Madison kicked some more junk out of her way to make it to the bed, which she cautiously sat down on.

"I don't care that you guys party at obscene hours of the night, I don't even care that you parade all kinds of girls in and out of here, but when those skanks start eating my _food_,"

"Shit Madison," the brunette groaned, rolling back over and under the covers. "I'll buy you some more Reeses."

"Not. The. Point," Madison stated, yanking at the blanket, which Ashley (non-surprisingly) had quite a good grip on. "It's the principle. My boyfriends don't eat your shit."

"And my girlfriends don't eat yours," Ashley said, yanking the covers back.

"You don't even have any girlfriends," the Latina said, relenting only because she didn't want to break a nail.

"My point exactly," the brunette scowled, before rolling back over.

"Ready for the comp today?" she asked, fiddling with a loose string on her pajama bottoms.

"I _have_ a comp today," Ashley mumbled, still buried.

"_Ashley_,"

"I know. I was just messin' wit' ya," Ashley groaned, sitting up and grabbing the bottled water from her nightstand. "I'm always ready."

"That's an understatement," said a voice from the hallway. Kyla.

"Sleep well?" Madison asked, quirking a knowing eyebrow.

"I feel like I slept with a hanger in my mouth," the younger girl said before rolling her eyes at the look on Ashley's face. "Don't even say it."

"I was trying not to even think it," the brunette murmured.

"Did you guys read the event specs? There's a newbie in the fray," Kyla said, coming to join them on the bed, a haggard piece of paper clutched tightly in her hand.

"Spencer Carlin," Madison read aloud. "Never heard of him."

"Her," Kyla corrected. "She's surfing in the women's comp, so I'm guessing it's a 'her'."

"Whatever. Him or her, rookie's about to get schooled," Ashley said, capping her water and moving to get ready.


	2. You Had Me At Watch It Blondie

**New Chapter: You Had Me at "Watch It Blondie!"**

"You alright?" Glen asked, looking in the back seat at Spencer who was more subdued than usual this morning.

"Bears are doing the hokey-pokey in my tummy," she replied, still staring out of the window.

"Okay then, not alright," he said, chuckling a bit. "You're gonna do great Spence."

"You think so?"

"No, I think you're gonna bomb. But it's your first time. Who's ever good at anything their first time?" he justified. "Well, maybe me and the first time I had sex but, I mean, that's a rarity."

"Thanks for the visual," she said, cringing then tensing again as she saw the banners in the near distance.

"Be easy and have fun." Glen said again, turning off the freeway. "You'll do fine."

"Ten o'clock," he murmured, brushing some sand off of his shoulder.

"Nice," Ashley said, nodding her approval. "But check out 3:42-ish."

"Damn, she's hot," Aiden mumbled, pulling down his shades to get a better look.

"Still up to the same crap I see."

A long shadow stood over the pair, blocking their view of the rest of the beach. Ashley sighed, relaxing back even further onto her elbows.

"What do you want Harper?"

"For you to quit staring at me," Tasha said, matter-of-factly. "But since that's not gonna happen in this millennium I'd settle for having my virginity back."

"I wasn't staring at you and I don't have your virginity. Go ask your 3rd grade crush, slut."

"Fuck you," Tasha said, laying out her beach towel and sitting down next to the brunette regardless.

"No way in hell I'm doing that again," Ashley muttered quickly, not a hint of amusement on her face.

Tasha broke first, the grin splitting her face in half. "You know you loved this," she said, pointing a finger at her beaming face.

"Whatever Tash," Ashley replied, rolling her eyes but smiling nonetheless.

"How's the wave?" Aiden asked the taller girl, starting to ogle as she slipped her wet suit halfway off. Ashley elbowing him pretty hard in the arm stopped him though.

"Awesome, they're pretty high already. Nice drag and everything. But this one wave," Tasha said, shaking her head. "Dude, this guy dropped into the pit and got worked!"

Ashley busted out laughing and Aiden suppressed his grin for a moment. "Is he alright?"

"Yeah, got the wind knocked out of him though," the other girl finished explaining.

Aiden got to his feet quickly. "Hey, I'm getting something to drink. You guys want anything?"

"Get me my smoothie," Ashley said, resuming her beach watching from behind mirrored shades.

"I'll take a water Aide," Tasha said sweetly, laying her head on Ashley's shoulder.

"Coming right up," he said, trotting away.

"I'll have one Gatorade and a Sprite," Spencer said, tucking her hair behind her ear. This humidity was doing nothing for her and she actually started to pray that the day progress quicker so that she could get into the water.

"You're new," said the woman, well girl, handing her the two beverages. "I haven't seen you around here."

"Yes," Spencer said, shyly. "Just moved here from New Jersey."

"Jersey? Wow," the other girl said. "That's pretty far."

Spencer just kind of looked away again as the girl looked her over with a renewed interest. "Well, I'm Chelsea," she offered, smiling brightly at the blonde, extending her hand. "If you ever get into any trouble around here, just mention me. I've got connections."

"I'm Spencer," she said, returning the gesture. "And thanks." Spencer turned around, drinks in hand, and 'ran into' a guy wearing bright blue board shorts and practically nothing else. She couldn't see beyond his chest…well, tattoo on his chest. But, instantly, she knew who it was – the story behind the aforementioned tattoo being the main attraction of the latest addition of her _Surfer_ magazine. Not prepared for the collision she fell backwards only to have strong arms catch her with a smooth… "gotcha".

"Brandon," Chelsea said, observing the scene from her post behind the counter. "How come girls are always falling for you?"

"It's gotta be the charm," he said in a way that would have been smarmy on anyone else. But on Brandon it came out as the most charismatic thing you'd ever heard. He sort of had it like that. He steadied Spencer, watching the blush spread across her cheeks with a smile.

"Sorry about that," she managed, somehow, but he waved her off. "It's no problem. I should've watched where I was going….or maybe not," he added with a wink.

"Uh, yeah…I have to go," Spencer stuttered out, not really looking at him as she walked away. Brandon watched her go, amazed. Well, he, Chelsea, and a few other patrons. No one ever resisted his charms. Gay, straight, bi, female, or (in that one case) male: he always got the girl (she-man).

"Hey Chels," he said, walking over to the stunned beverage provider. "Who was that and why did she just blow me off?"

"Name's Spencer Carlin and I don't have a clue," Chelsea said as the activity in the small refreshment area got moving again.

"Took you long enough," Tasha said, accepting her drink from Aiden.

"Yeah, sorry about that but the most bizzaro thing just happened at Chelsea's,"

"Hey blondie, watch it," Ashley grumbled out as a non-suspecting blonde girl trampled over the bottom of her towel. The girl looked distracted, checking over her shoulder for something or someone. She mumbled out an apology, not even looking in their direction as she continued on her way.

"Bitch," Ashley muttered, brushing the sand off.

"Nice ass though," Tasha assessed.

"Oh my God Glen, help me," Spencer whispered, sitting down next him hurriedly, kicking sand all over his blanket.

"_Spencer_," he groaned, blowing sand out of his mouth.

"There's a guy coming over here. He's a pro surfer and he's awesome, and I can NOT talk to him so help me…please?"

Glen just stared at her blankly. "What?"

Spencer sighed.

"Cinderella," Brandon called out, catching up to her. "Left your Sprite."

"This is my Sprite," Spencer replied, holding up the plastic bottle.

"Oh, well," he grinned. "Guess I stole this, then." Brandon looked over at Glen. "Boyfriend?"

"No," Spencer replied quickly before getting cut off.

"Brother," Glen corrected, staring at the guy. "And you're the guy from the poster."

"Excuse me?"

Spencer glared at Glen, speaking up before he had a chance to embarrass her. "Nothing. We, uh, saw you on the event posters."

"Oh," Brandon said knowingly, plopping down on the sand next to the pair. "So you are a fan?"

"Ha! Spencer worships you guys," Glen said, loudly.

"Sweet," Brandon said, smiling as Spencer blushed, rubbing her left arm with her right hand. A nervous habit. "So I'm assuming you know my name then?"

"Brandon," she said, finally looking up. "Brandon Harper. Front man with KaTo surfing team."

Brandon's smile got wider. "Very, very sweet. Well, Spencer," he paused here, registering the shock on her face of him knowing her name. "I know that this may sound really impromptu but maybe you and your brother would like to watch me in the comp this afternoon. I can hook you up with beach passes. Awesome view, right next to the judges and free food of course."

"Actually I can't,"

"Uh…got other plans?"

"Yeah. I'm uh…competing,"

"You are?" Brandon hurriedly pulled out the schedule, looking it over for the girl's name, spotting it at the bottom. He also noticed the 'R' printed next to it. "You're in Ashley's set?" he sort of asked, his voice kind of…strange.

"Yeah," Spencer replied, rather despondently.

"Well then, good luck. And I guess I'll be seeing you later then, Spencer," Brandon said, extending his hand for a formal handshake, doing the same with Glen. Then, without another word he was gone.


	3. Hold Your Own

It was the finals. Her first finals ever. And she already considered it a victory.

Sure in her first heat, she totally messed up because of her nerves, nearly wiping out on the first turn, but she managed to keep her balance and put on quite a show judging from the audience's applause when she walked back onto shore.

She was "absolutely sick" in her second round heat another amateur girl told her, possibly second only to the great Ashley Davies.

Le sigh.

Ashley Davies. That girl could surf. Spencer only wished she could be half as great as her. It was no secret that Ashley was the number one ranked surfer in the nation or, perhaps, the world. She probably would be in the top five of men's surfers.

Spencer had hoped, albeit barely, but she had hoped the veteran would be impressed enough with Spencer's skills to take her under her wing. Okay, that was very high hopes, but she at least expected to be acknowledged by the girl. As it was, Ashley had barely looked in her direction from her position seated with the rest of the KaTo camp. Brandon was being nice though. After every heat he'd applaud extra enthusiastically. It was pretty funny actually.

Now, though, she couldn't hear anyone. It was just her and the waves – the one place where she could find peace.

--

"Impressive huh?" Kyla asked, nudging her sister slightly as she took the seat right next to her.

"She's alright," Ashley said, her mirrored sunglasses covering her eyes, concealing any indication that she might think otherwise.

"That bitch is tryin' to show me up," Madison grumped, angrily setting down her water bottle. True enough, Spencer's marks were high enough to put her in the lead, with only Ashley's final heat left.

"Looks like she already did," Aiden said, trying not to laugh as he watched Madison's name drop below Spencer's.

"Hell, she's pretty good," Brandon said, surprise evident in his voice. "Might even beat you Davies."

Ashley just smirked at him, grabbing her board and taking off for the ocean just as the announcer called her name.

--

It went by pretty quickly for Spencer – the everything after: having her picture taken as she accepted the second place cash prize, being swept into an impromptu hug from her brother, even Brandon pressing a card with a party address on it into her hand. It was all a blur. There was one moment though that stood out with shocking clarity, especially when you consider how brief of a moment it was.

They were calling the winners: third, second, and first to the sand for the after competition ceremonies. All of the formalities were taken care of here, including the ritualistic display of sportsmanlike behavior: the shaking of your opponents' hands.

Madison sauntered over to Spencer, her look of contempt firmly in place. "I gave you this one rookie," she hissed, gripping her hand with voracity as she pumped it once, turning away in a hurry. Spencer had barely allowed the crestfallen frown to cross her face when Ashley gently took her hand. "Nice moves rook," she said, shaking Spencer's hand. She couldn't know for sure, because of those damned mirrored sunglasses, but she could have sworn she and Ashley locked eyes. But as quick as it had happened it was over. The brunette disappeared into a crowd of over-eager fans and Glen tackled her in another bear hug.

--

"Aw, you should have seen her Dad. She's a complete natural and can you believe it? Second place….I would hand her the phone but she's still a little out of it I think…yeah, she's just ecstatic over the win…I'll tell her…hey how's Mom…"

Spencer let Glen's one-end phone conversation fade into the background of what was turning out to be a great day. She'd taken one of the best to the brink and…well, it seemed, if she wasn't just imagining things, that she may have won the more experienced girl's respect.

Or, she hoped.

"Dad's real proud of you Spence," Glen said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Yeah," she said, beaming back. "What about Mom?" she asked, very timidly.

Glen sighed. "Mom…Mom's glad that you did well."

"Did she say that?" Spencer asked.

"Spencer, just…don't worry about it okay? I'm proud of you and Dad's proud of you. That counts for something doesn't it?"

"Yeah…yeah, you're right,"

"Awesome…so…what are we doing to celebrate your almost victory? Ice cream? Pizza? ...please don't say the _Sound of Music_?" he added, with a groan.

"Shut up. I was thinking of maybe going to a party Brandon invited me to,"

"Sick! Party?! Here we come! Wait…hold on. Is this that pretty boy surfer dude?"

"Yeah…"

"Aww, man. Babysitting duty. I'm gonna have to watch you like a hawk Spence,"

"Hey, I'm a big girl and I can handle myself,"

"No you can't. You can't even drive. And you want me to trust you alone with Mr. McDreamy. No way. No dude's putting their hands on my little sister,"

"I have had boyfriends before you know,"

"I'm so not hearing this,"

"Bobby Churchill,"

"Not listening to you. La la la la,"

"We kissed and everything,"

"La la…what's everything?"

"Just get us home so I can change for this party."

--

"Hey party people," Chelsea greeted stepping into the tent, her greeting being met by several waves and pats on the back. She made her way over to the celebrators, the beach elite as they were sometimes called.

"Hey Chels. You made it," Brandon said, enveloping the girl in a friendly hug, shoving a drink into her hand.

"Don't I always?"

"True,"

"So, where's the woman of the hour?"

"Where else?" Madison snipped. "Off chasing tail as usual."

"Oh please," Ashley said, appearing out of nowhere. "I don't chase anything. It falls into my lap," she purred seductively, falling onto Madison's lap.

"Whatever, freak," Madison said, pushing her off before getting up and stomping away angrily.

"What crawled up her butt?" Chelsea asked.

"She placed third…again," Brandon answered, snickering a bit as he did so.

Chelsea took a seat. "You guys really should be nicer to her."

"We are nice," Tasha maintained. "We keep her ass on the team don't we?"

"You're mean,"

"I'm kidding. Madison knows we love her,"

"In the strictly platonic sense," Ashley added distractedly, her eyes on an attractive brunette headed in her direction.

"You, uh, feel like dancing?" the girl asked, leaning over. Way over. Like cleavage city.

Ashley merely quirked an eyebrow and allowed herself to be whisked away, just as Aiden and Kyla showed back up.

"Was that…Brooke Ash just took off with?" he asked the table, Brandon snapping his fingers immediately after.

"I knew she looked familiar,"

"Yeah, and she was hooking up with you last week," Kyla added, watching as recognition dawned on Brandon's face. He finally just shrugged.

"Whatever. Bi is the new straight," he said, taking another look around the tent, smiling when he saw her. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go get my mack on."

--

"You made it…" Brandon said, popping up in front of Spencer, smile stretched across his face. "…and you brought your brother," he added, somewhat dejectedly.

"You got that right buddy," Glen said, wrapping a protective arm around her.

Brandon was momentarily put off before shaking it off, swinging his head behind him, indicating to the latecomers to follow him in that direction. Spencer was instantly star-struck, even more so. Even though she'd been in competition earlier and they all seemed like rather friendly people then, well, for the most part, that didn't erase the fact that these were her idols, right now, sitting in front of her. Looking at her.

Brandon pulled up a chair for Spencer, practically forcing her into it before making with the introductions. "Guys, this here is Spencer and her brother…."

"Glen," the curly haired blonde guy said.

"What is she doing here?" Madison asked, voice laced with venom. She was standing over the table, her hands on her hips.

"I invited her," Brandon answered straight away, shooting Madison a look of his own.

"What did you do that for? You know this table is for KaTo team members only,"

"Quit bitching Madison and tighten up your game. Then we wouldn't be having this discussion at all," Tasha said, matching Madison's tone.

"Whatever," the Latina grumbled before stomping off again.

"Just ignore her. She has a pretty permanent case of PMS," Brandon whispered in Spencer's ear, loud enough for Kyla to hear.

"As a woman, I'd usually find that comment sexist," Kyla started. "But I can't argue with the truth."

"So, how 'bout it gorgeous? Feel like dancing?" Brandon asked her, a slight smile on his face.

"Mmm, sure, why not?" Spencer agreed, placing her hand in his and heading off for the dance floor.

"Hey Casanova, keep your hands inside the rails at all times alright?" Glen said, grabbing Brandon's wrist before they got too far.

"Gotcha," Brandon said, snatching his arm away and following where Spencer just went.

--

"You're a great dancer," Brooke whispered directly into her ear, her lips brushing against the sensitive piece of anatomy with every word.

Ashley's eyes closed involuntarily but her smirk was in place before the other girl pulled back. "You ready to get out of here?" she asked her, eyes blazing.

Brooke was just about ready to give in but then another song came on. One she loved. "One more song?"

"Fine," Ashley said with a sigh, rolling her eyes and turning Brooke around so there were pressed together back to front. To be perfectly honest she was already bored with this girl. And if tonight went as planned, she'd be breaking a rule she hadn't broken in more than a year. Never go home with the same girl twice. This was Brooke's repeat performance…and she was already over earlier that week.

Ashley's thoughts shifted again though as a flash of brilliant blonde hair caught her eye. She turned her head in the appropriate direction and was greeted with the sight of Brandon dancing closely (but obviously not as close as he'd like) with her blonde adversary from earlier. The girl had her back to Ashley as she moved in sync with the music, her fluid movements bringing a new life to the song.

Or so Ashley thought.

Brandon caught her staring and gave her a quick yet noticeable thumbs up. Noticeable because the girl he was dancing with turned quickly, eyes widening, and then widened even more when she saw how intimately the brunette was dancing with the unknown girl. Ashley could have sworn she saw a slight tinge of pink on the other girl's cheeks but it was impossible to tell in this lighting.

Brandon took advantage of Spencer's movement, turning her all the way around before getting lost in the music again, and then her. Spencer diverted her eyes when she realized she was staring, bringing a smirk to Ashley's face. She returned her attention to Brooke, trailing her hands to the girl's hips, pulling her closer into herself. She looked up in time to see Spencer turning away.

She smiled into Brooke's shoulder with her next thought, trailing kisses up her neck, before bringing a hand up to tilt the girl's head backward, kissing her in the awkward, although functional position. She cracked an eyelid, sneaking a glance at how all of this was going over with the blonde girl.

Spencer's eyes met hers for a second before falling to the ground. For some reason, she raised them again, slowly, meeting Ashley's now complete gaze full on. It lasted less than a second, but it happened.

"Hey," Brooke murmured, turning around in Ashley's arms. "I think I'm ready to get out of here now," she whispered, tucking a wet kiss right underneath Ashley's lower lip.

Ashley just nodded on time before taking her hand and heading towards the exit, pausing only long enough to give Spencer a wink and smirk over her shoulder.

--

"You okay?" Brandon asked her, feeling her go a little stiff against him.

"I'm…uh, fine," She stuttered out, trying to wipe the look of shock off of her face.

That was a girl Ashley Davies was with. Like, _with_ with. So, Ashley Davies was gay?! How'd Spencer not know that? She'd read her bio only like… a million times. Never read anything about the girl's sexual preference in there. Spencer never had a reason to know anything personal about her before. Or now for that matter. Did it matter to her that the great Ashley Davies was gay? It shouldn't and it wouldn't…except...well, she _winked_ at her. And the really telling part was that she couldn't shake it.

She shivered, again, and this time Brandon turned her back around to face him. "You cold?"

She couldn't help but smile at him, his concern. For all she knew, he was a nice guy, regardless of what's she's heard about him while he was going to get them drinks. Even if it all was a ploy to "bed her" the attention wasn't completely unwarranted. And he _was_ cute.

"A little," she said, with a smile and a nod. He took off his button up, draping it over her shoulders.

"Better?"

"Yeah," she said, softly, getting a little lost in his eyes. She hadn't noticed how light they were before.

"Bran," Aiden said, interrupting the moment, Kyla tucked under his arm. "We're gonna take off. We still on for tomorrow?"

"Yeah man," He answered, bumping fists with him, throwing a soft punch into Kyla's arm, as the pair walked away, telling Spencer how nice it was to meet her.

"They're nice,"

"They are," Brandon agreed, smiling at her endearingly, brushing a few strands of hair out of her face. "So am I."

She just blushed under his gaze, ducking her head slightly. "You wanna leave? Go somewhere private?"

The blush quickly gave way to alarm. She wasn't that kind of girl. Not for anybody.

"I didn't…I, not for that, just to talk. I swear," Brandon said hurriedly, holding up his hands. "I'm not that guy."

Her barely noticeable nod was all it took for him to take her hand and lead them out of the party.

--

"Thanks for tonight," Spencer said, leaning into the car window.

"Ah," Brandon said, throwing his hand at her. "You deserved it. I mean, it isn't any day when a rookie goes toe to toe with Ash."

"It was my first ever competition actually," she admitted, tucking her hair away from her face.

"You're kidding? Wait 'til I tell Madison _that_. She's really gonna hate you then," he said, laughing good-naturedly. "You sure you don't want me to walk you in?"

"Uh," Spencer said, taking a look behind her. "It might not be in your best interest. Glen's probably more than pissed."

"Oh yes, the brother,"

"Yes, the brother," she responded rolling her eyes. "So, you should probably stay in the car."

"Will do. You'd better call me blue eyes. I might just jump off a bridge if you leave me hanging," he said, smiling all the while. She smiled back.

"Will do. Good night Brandon."

"Good night Spencer."

--

"Look who finally comes strolling in…" Glen said, getting up of the sofa before she even closed the front door.

"Glen, don't start,"

"Don't tell me not to start. Why didn't you answer your cell?"

"I was busy," she said, trying to get past him to her bedroom.

"Don't tell me you were hooking up with that guy-" he said, grabbing her arm, halting her progress.

"GLEN," She yanked her arm away.

"'Cause if you did-"

"Glen, I wasn't hooking up with him, God. I just wanted to enjoy my first non-win without my big brother breathing down my neck,"

"I'm only looking out for you Spence,"

"I know and I love you for it. But…I'm a big girl now Glen,"

"Don't I know it," he muttered and she smiled slightly.

"And I can handle myself. Okay?"

"Yeah,"

"Glen,"

"Okay Spence. But I'm still keeping my eye on you,"

"Yeah, yeah," she said, walking away and into the bathroom.

--

"Ashley?"

"Hmm," Ashley mumbled sleepily, shifting slightly under the sheets.

"I'm gonna go home,"

"Mmm, 'kay,"

Brooke leaned down and pressed her lips against Ashley's. "I'll call you."

"Mmm 'kay,"

"Is it alright if I get something to eat before I go?"

"Sure. Uh…just, uh, leave the Reeses alone?"

"Okay," Brooke whispered, closing the door quietly behind her.

Ashley relaxed back into the bed, falling asleep almost immediately. But just before slumber overtook her, she thought about the blonde girl, with the blue eyes – the girl who held her own with her on the waves.

Little did she know, not more than fifteen minutes away, Spencer was doing the same thing.


	4. You Can Look But You Can't Touch

**Author's Note:** Hello everyone. I'm writing this to clear a few things up about what's going on here. First, this is a re-posting of a story previously written and posted in its entirety some year and a half ago. Ergo, Surfer's Ed is riding on my coattails. Sorry. I had to clear that up. Don't want people to think I'm stealing their ideas. Secondly, I'm re-posting this story for two reasons. I've recently started to toy with the sequel to Surf Story, Surf Story 2 (original I know) and I think responses to the work may serve as some kind of a muse. The second reason is to refresh the story in old readers' mind so as to avoid as much confusion as possible if and when the sequel is finally posted.

As for the story itself, the two new main characters, Brandon and Tasha, are characters "re-worked" for lack of a better phrase and brought over from a fic I'd written previous to this one. I noticed that there was a lack of character description for them because the assumption was that people had read the other story.

Lastly, as to the question of whether or not I'll re-post other stories i.e. The Series of Fortunate Events. That depends on one thing primarily: whether or not I can find the thing (like dude, it's on my laptop in some folder somewhere. I named the file something weird. I know I'm like the worst writer ever.) If I find it, I'll post it. I actually miss Sparky a little.

Okay, that's all for now. Thanks for reading and if I don't talk to you (American) guys before the holiday, Happy Thanksgiving.

--

She sat on the window ledge, looking between the two windows at the expanse of ocean she could just barely see. Glen left for work about an hour ago which means she had no transportation, which meant she was prisoner for the day. Unless…unless she called Brandon. Not a bad idea.

"Mghfipuh…"

"…Brandon?" 

"Spencer?" he croaked out sleepily.

"Yeah, did I wake you?"

"Kinda yeah, but it's all good," he said, sitting up in his bed. "Had an early morning but the surf sucked so I stayed in bed. It was flat. No swell at all."

"No wave?"

"Well, yeah, but there wasn't any break. But enough about me, what's going on with you?"

"Nothing much. I'm stuck at home today because Glen had to work,"

"Well, what do you want to do? I can take you,"

"I don't want to be a burden," she stated slowly, unable to suppress the grin forming on her face. 

"But I'm asking you. Come on. Hang out with me for the day. I can show you around town. Show you all the hot spots,"

"Okay," she agreed, a little reluctantly. She seriously hoped hanging with him didn't mean hanging with the team, because she didn't think she could handle that.

"Alright! How's an hour? That good for you?"

"Okay Brandon. See you in an hour."

**-- **

"Rough night?" Aiden asked Ashley as she shuffled into the kitchen.

"Don't you ever go home?"

"Guess that's a yes," he muttered. "Your coffee's on the stove."

"Thank God," she said, grabbing the mocha flavored drink and taking a hearty swig.

"Thank Kyla you mean," he said, rustling the newspaper as she sat down.

"Seriously though, I thought you were hitting the waves with Brandon this morning,"

"No go. Wave sucks today. So, what's going on with you and Brooke? Second time she's been here this week,"

"Yeah, I'm slipping," Ashley mumbled into her mug.

"Maybe. Then again, maybe you like her," he said with a smirk, peering at her over the top of the paper.

"Why are you always trying to get in my head Aiden?" she asked with a laugh.

"It's so fun in there," he said, laughing with her.

"What are you doing today?" she asked, grabbing a section of his paper.

"I gotta go by Karen's. See how my little munchkin is doing," Aiden said, getting up and tossing his coffee cup in the trash.

"When are you gonna bring her over here? I haven't seen her in forever it seems,"

Because she was reading she didn't notice the slight slump in his shoulders or the reluctance he had with turning back around to the table.

"Yeah…about that…"

"What?"

"Karen doesn't think it's such a good idea for Chelle to hang out around here anymore,"

"Why?" she asked, faced masked in confusion. He didn't say. He just looked at her, letting her see the answer in his eyes.

"I see,"

"I'm still gonna bring her, you know? She's my daughter too. Just…maybe not as often,"

"Yeah, Aide. I got it. No big deal," she shrugged, taking a long drink of her coffee. He knew better than to believe her.

"Alright then, I have to… go. …uh, do you need anything?" he asked, out of courtesy, even though he knew she wouldn't take him up on his offer. In the ten years he's known her she never has. As expected she shook her head and he left, knowing better than to say another word.

**--**

"Where are we?" Spencer asked as he pulled into the driveway of a magnificent looking beach house – a vaguely familiar magnificent looking beach house.

"I just gotta grab something and then we're good to go," he said, opening his car door and jumping out. She was still trying to remember when, or rather where she'd seen the place when her door swung open.

"I'm not leaving you out here. C'mon," he said, offering her a hand.

"Yo, yo! Who's home?!" Brandon called out as he pushed open the door, still holding onto Spencer's hand. "It's me!"

Spencer tried to take in her surroundings but Brandon was moving too fast. She did however notice the walls were lined with several framed photographs and magazine covers, _Surf_ magazine covers.

He pushed open a bedroom door. Empty.

"Where the hell is everybody?" he mumbled, moving further into the house.

Knocking on the next one and getting no answer he kicked it open too. Big mistake…or minor. Depends on who you ask.

"Oh shit," he said, shutting the door quickly, but not before a fully naked Ashley caught a glimpse of him.

"Damn it Brandon! Don't you knock?!" the fiery brunette yelled through the door, pulling her ear buds out of her ears.

"Can't you hear?!" he shouted back. "I'm so sorry," he added to a stunned Spencer.

"Who are you talking to?" Ashley asked, hearing the boy's murmur.

"None of your business," he said, knowing that was gonna piss her off.

The bedroom door opened again, this time revealing a clothed Ashley. It wasn't a lot of clothes but it was better than nothing. (Or worse, you know. I would say worse.)

Her eyes immediately locked with Ashley's, inadvertently. Well, after she took a quick glance at the brunette's body. She had just seen her naked, after all.

She'd never quite seen the brunette like this, though, so…unguarded. Usually Ashley was, well, she still was half naked – boy shorts with little hearts and a cut off tank could hardly be considered clothes – but her trademark mirrored sunglasses were always in place, providing that extra layer of protection between her and the outside world. She was always impossible to read, but not being able to look her in the eye made that task even more difficult. But now she was staring at Spencer, into her really. The blonde was finding it a little difficult to breathe.

"I'm sure you remember Spencer," Brandon said, unknowingly breaking the moment.

"Yeah. I remember. The rookie," Ashley drawled, leveling her gaze at the blonde.

"I guess," Spencer replied, shrugging her shoulders, now avoiding eye contact.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, turning her attention back to Brandon momentarily.

"I need my fins. Kyla said you had 'em,"

"They're in Mad's room. Everything gets broken in my room,"

"Gotcha," he said, mumbling a quick 'be right back' to Spencer.

Ashley leaned against her door jamb, crossing her right leg over her left, crossing her arms against her chest. She allowed her eyes to rake up and down Spencer's body, smirking as she noticed the blonde girl shift uncomfortably.

"So, Spencer Carlin, you're from New Jersey?"

This tidbit of information got Spencer's attention. Did Ashley Davies know something about _her_?

"How did you-"

"It was in your bio. I get the list of competitors and their info before each competition," the brunette responded casually, her eyes still burning holes into Spencer. "I also know that you're fresh out of high school, the youngest child, and if you couldn't surf, you wouldn't be able to breathe."

Spencer blushed when Ashley said that last part, the quote sounded so juvenile now, but at the time, it made all the sense in the world.

"Well, we have one thing in common," Ashley said, smiling. "Surfing's my lifeline too."

"Found 'em," Brandon said, coming back into the foyer where the girls were convened. "Hey Ash, wanna come hang out with us?"

"Can't. I gotta…" the brunette started, stopping immediately when she saw the disappointment flash across the blonde's features. "…you know what? My schedule just opened up."

"Cool," Brandon said simply.

"Cool," Spencer echoed, incapable of suppressing a grin.

"Cool," Ashley agreed, before retreating back into her bedroom.

She hadn't stopped staring at her all day.

And it wasn't her usual staring. Granted, she thought the girl was beautiful and she'd be lying her ass off if she said she wasn't attracted to her, but that was just the beginning. Soon Ashley found herself looking at her eyes, how they lit up and turned the most magnificent color blue when she was excited about something, which was often. She noticed how Spencer used her hands when she was speaking to emphasize her points. She thought it was adorable how easy it was to fluster the girl, make her blush with a few compliments. Hell, Spencer Carlin was the personification of adorable.

Which was the point really. Ashley didn't do adorable. She did straight, semi-straight, questioning, and whatever other label gay girls use when they're in denial. She did hot, semi-hot, smoking hot, and scorching. She did single, committed, in between, and – in that one case but never again – married. But she never, ever did adorable. Sweet girls were too… sweet for her to get involved with.

But hey, in her defense, those girls never liked tater tots.

Spencer picked up another tot and popped it into her mouth while Brandon spoke.

"You should really get a sponsor now that you're out here,"

"Isn't that gonna be hard?" Spencer asked, taking a sip of her tea, trying to pretend she didn't feel Ashley's eyes on her.

"Not if you're good. Which you are. Trent'll probably want to snatch you up for our team," he said, stuffing three more french fries into his mouth. "You think Trent will want her Ash?"

Hearing her name finally shook her out of her staring fit and she shook her head slightly to clear the cobwebs. Spencer buried her smile in her glass again as she took another sip.

And yes, Ashley did notice.

"You're thinking with your crotch again, Brandon,"

Chewed up pieces of french fry flew out of Brandon's mouth as he choked, and Spencer tried to breathe again too, sputtering as her tea went down the wrong pipe.

"That was rude, Ashley,"

"And true. She's only been in one competition and you're trying to put her on the team. You have to work to be part of KaTo Bran. You know that. No offense or anything, rook. You're good, but this isn't all fun and games. Our sponsors wanna win,"

Spencer couldn't help looking the way she did, but they were about to see another side of Spencer Carlin. "Wait, do you think I wanna lose? I was gunnin' for you yesterday Davies,"

"And you came up short," Ashley said, narrowing her eyes at her.

"Barely," Spencer shot back, crossing her arms across her chest, sitting back slightly in her chair.

"Almost doesn't count," the brunette retorted. "If you want to be the best, then you can't settle for second best. You've gotta want it."

"I want it,"

"And you have to work for it,"

"I'm all about hard work,"

"And you can't let people get in your head…beautiful,"

"Huh?" Spencer asked, completely caught off guard and both Brandon and Ashley tried to cover up smiles. Brandon was slightly more successful than the brunette.

"I guess we'll have to work on that. You're gonna be in next week's comp right?" Ashley asked her.

"You tell me. You have the connections remember?" the blonde asked with a smirk.

"Nice. Let's have this sponsor conversation then. You know, after I beat you and wipe that smirk off of your face," Ashley said, holding out her hand for Spencer.

"Agreed," Spencer said, shaking on it.


	5. Lifeline

"You ready?" Kyla asked Ashley as she stretched out next to her.

"Born ready," she replied, rotating her shoulders a little more, discreetly taking a look around the beach.

"Who do you keep looking for?"

Okay, so not that discreet.

"No one," Ashley replied, too quickly and Kyla narrowed her eyes at her.

"Is some girl's boyfriend after you?"

"No,"

"Is some girl's _girlfriend_ after you?"

"Kyla. No, Jesus. I wasn't even looking for anybody,"

SMACK!

"What the-" Kyla yelled jumping about a foot in the air, rubbing her backside.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," Aiden grinned, holding a giggling little girl in his arms.

"Auntee Ashwee," Michelle said, reaching all the way out for the brunette.

"Come here, you," she said, reaching out and taking the two-and- a-half-year old. "What are you doing here?"

"Watch you surfy Auntee Ashwee,"

"Karen let me bring her today," Aiden added when Ashley looked his way.

"Well then, we're gonna have to make sure you get a good seat, aren't we?" she said to the little one, walking her over to a prime competition watching location.

**--**

"Spencer Carlin," she said, looking back over her shoulder anxiously, keeping an eye out for Ash- Brandon. She was looking for Brandon.

"Sorry, can you spell that?" the man said, looking over some papers in confusion.

"Carlin…C-A-R-L-I-N. First name Spencer,"

"In the women's comp?" he asked and she nodded. "I don't see you here. Are you sure you registered?"

"What's the problem?" an older man in a white polo and carrying a clipboard asked as he approached the registration tables.

"Miss Carlin says she's supposed to compete today but I don't see her on the sheet," the seated man said.

"Let's see here," the older man said, flipping through his own papers. "Oh yeah, Carlin. You've been scratched."

"Excuse me?"

"We bumped you for another competitor. It's no big. Just come out next week," the man said, attempting to leave.

Note that I said attempt.

"Wait. What?! I registered for competitions today. I expected to compete today. My surfing career rests on THIS competition,"

"Look, kid. That's the way things work out here. People love team KaTo and Team Roxy. They want to see the best competing against the best. We're just trying to give the people what they want," he said, and with that he was gone.

"Un-fucking-believable," the blonde muttered under her breath, turning on her heel and storming off, launching about a pound of sand into the air as she kicked it.

"You really gotta quit kickin' sand on me Blondie," Ashley said, brushing off as much as she could while holding a toddler in her arms.

"I'm sor…" Spencer trailed off, looking quizzically at the little girl she was holding. She looked…well, she looked like Ashley. "…ry."

"That's okay. Are you gonna tell me why you started sending sand through airmail or are we just gonna pretend it didn't happen?"

"I'm sorry. I…they just told me I got scratched," she said, avoiding looking directly at Ashley.

"For who?"

"I don't know,"

"Hang on. Can you hold her for a minute?" Ashley asked, not really waiting for a response before handing Michelle over. She walked over to the registration tables, but not before putting her shades back on.

"Hi," the little girl said brightly, looking directly at Spencer. A stare that the blonde sensed was familiar.

"Hi," Spencer said with a smile.

"My name Michelle. You name?"

"I'm Spencer," she said. "And it is very nice to meet you Michelle."

"Penser," the girl giggled adorably as she attempted to say her name, making Spencer chuckle a bit as well.

"Well, I see you two caught up," Ashley said, re-emerging in front of them.

Michelle bounced in Spencer's arms, reaching forward for Ashley again. "Auntee Ashwee. Get me."

"Gotcha," the brunette said, grabbing the now squealing girl and tickling her a bit before holding her securely in her arms. "And this," she added, throwing a pink rash guard with the number 28 on the back "…is for you. Don't say I never did anything for you."

Without saying anything else or waiting for an apology she sauntered away, Michelle waving goodbye over her shoulder.

**--**

Announcer Number One: "The waves are getting pretty steep out there today Donna. That could prove to be a challenge for some of the less experienced surfers."

Announcer Number Two. "That's right Ted. When the wave is like this the veterans know how to stay in the tube and get more rides. Sometimes the rookies have a tendency to overshoot the wave instead of going with the flow. I suspect we'll see a few wipe-outs today."

**--**

"You nervous?" Brandon asked, handing over her now uncapped water bottle. Her hands were shaking too much to do it.

"Do you really have to ask me that question?" Spencer said, managing to swallow a few drops before just handing it back to him. 

Brandon looked over at her, noticing how tense she was. Her shoulders were hunched together and every muscle on her body was taught. She'd completely bomb if she didn't relax. "Just don't overdo it alright. Just pretend it's you and the wave. You'll be good."

"I don't know," she replied, looking extremely worried, biting her lower lip.

"Alright. Come here," he said sitting up a little on his towel, patting the spot in between his knees for her to sit. "You need to relax, okay," he whispered into her ear, kneading her shoulders, her neck, her back…lower back.

"Mmm, 'kay,"

"You feel better now?"

"Mmm hmm,"

"Good," he said, with a smile. "I have to tell you something. And I don't want you to freak out or anything so just be cool,"

"Okay,"

"Trent's here,"

Spencer knew that name. Why did she know that name? Gasp. No way-

"I said not to freak out," he said, feeling her tense again.

"Oh my God, Brandon!" she yelled sitting up abruptly, and turning slightly so that she could look at him. "I'm gonna…oh my God, I'm gonna be sick,"

"Spencer. Calm down. You're gonna be great. You _are_ great,"

"Don't. Stop it okay. Oh my God,"

"You really have to calm down Spencer. You're almost up. Ashley just finished her set."

**--**

Announcer Number Two: "Spencer Carlin's brand new on the circuit and she's in this week's comp fresh off a second place finish last week. It was the first competition for the fresh-faced girl from Trenton, New Jersey. But, can you imagine, entering your first competition and going up against and almost beating Ashley Davies?"

Announcer Number One: "It's intimidating to say the least, Donna. But she held her own then. Let's see how she fares now. Looks like the two competitor's are sharing a word before Spencer's run."

**--**

"Good luck," Ashley said, jogging off the wet sand, board tucked under her arm. She caught the blonde as she walked by. "The wall's gonna be pushing really hard. Stay in your lane and don't try to get fancy 'kay?"

Spencer nodded imperceptibly and Ashley walked away leaving the blonde to set off into her run.

She was doing pretty well…at first. She made sure not to push too hard, maintaining her center position, tunneling with pristine accuracy. But then the wind must've changed. The wall was pushing up hard against her back making it difficult to turn. She's just barely made it out of the last two tunnels, feeling the wave crash hard against the back of her board. She probably should have stopped then but knowing she had some more time she tried for one more wave.

Tried being the operative word.

**--**

Brandon and Ashley looked on as the blonde pushed for the last wave, knowing that it was a dangerous move. They watched it swallow her up. They also saw the board emerge…Spencer-less.

"Shit," Brandon whispered, throwing the towel aside and taking off two seconds after Ashley.

They both beat the lifeguards to the water, diving in head first in the direction of where they presumed Spencer went down.

**--**

Aiden and Tasha watched Brandon pop out of the water first, making a distress signal with his hands… he hadn't found her. The lifeguards were still searching too, popping up every now and again to get air. But they wouldn't find her. They weren't destined to.

She didn't know what made her swim this way but she did. She spotted her, floating towards the bottom of the ocean. She was close to shore, but obviously unconscious, the leash that connected her to her board still attached to her ankle. Ashley hooked an arm around her stomach and swam to the surface with the girl. She looked around and realized with dread that they were a considerable distance away from the competition site. She hurriedly waded over to shore, laying Spencer out on her back, willing herself to remember her CPR training, as the girl was turning an unmistakable color blue.

'Okay Ash, clear the airway. Tilt the chin. Feel for breath.' She leaned down close to Spencer's face, waiting in vain to feel a breath against her cheek.

'Not breathing. Breathe for her,' she thought, pinching Spencer's nostrils shut and sealing her mouth over hers, giving her the requisite two rescue breaths and then starting the chest compressions.

"C'mon Spencer," she said out loud, pushing her whole upper body weight onto the girl's chest, feeling her eyes get decidedly blurry. She blinked away the moisture and gave ten more compressions to get to thirty before giving Spencer two more rescue breaths.

It was on the twelfth compression that Spencer started coughing the water up, opening her eyes groggily.

"Spencer. Spencer, can you hear me?"

The blonde opened her eyes and stared up at Ashley, the sun was directly behind her in the sky, illuminating the blue behind her, making it seem as if she'd just descended from the heavens.

"Did I die?" she croaked out.

"Not yet Blondie. Not yet."

"You saved me," Spencer whispered, reaching up a hand to touch Ashley's cheek. The brunette's eyes fluttered as she leaned into the touch, only just now realizing how fast her heart was still beating.

"Ah, it was nothing," the brunette whispered back, smiling widely.

"Thank you," Spencer said, matching her smile.

"There they are!" a voice shouted, soon to be accompanied by other more obnoxious voices.

Spencer's hand fell from her face and she attempted to sit up only to be pushed back down by latex covered hands. "Lie still ma'am. We've got you." They all swarmed in on her, a sea of faces, but amidst the flurry she could only see one. Her Angel.

**--**

"I'm not doing it Ashley. No way. That kid almost died today," he said, tucking some papers into a folder.

"I know Trent but -"

"No buts. KaTo does not need that kind of publicity. Period," Trent said, his piercing green eyes conveying his message loud and clear.

"She can train under me alright. I'll help her," Ashley pleaded, peering at the man from across the desk.

"You'll make sure she doesn't overdo it, like she did today?"

"I will,"

"And she doesn't surf in any comps she's not ready for,"

"Done,"

Trent eyed her hard one more time before relenting with a sigh. "Fine. But I mean it Ash, this girl is your responsibility. She doesn't sneeze unless you know about it. Don't let her out of your sight, okay? She's your shadow."

"That's…not gonna be a problem," she replied with a smile.


	6. A Little Friendly Competition?

Ding Dong

Spencer sleepily shuffled to her front door, scratching her stomach lazily, her tank riding up in the process.

Who on earth could be crazy enough to wake her up this early on a Monday after she almost died?

She turned the door handle, pulling it open, then slammed it right back in place.

"Oh my God," she gasped/whispered to herself, pressing her back against the door.

"Spencer! Open the door!"

Spencer moved around the cramped apartment quickly, picking up clothes and frowning as she picked up a stiff pair of Glen's underwear.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

"Will you open the door?!"

"Just a minute! I'm…uh…changing!" the blonde called back, rolling her eyes at her own ineptitude to fabricate a plausible lie. 'She just saw you dressed, moron. And, now you have to change clothes,' she thought grabbing some flannel pants and a new tank out of her dresser drawer.

She was pulling up the pants and walking to the door as Ashley knocked again.

"I'm counting to three then I'm leaving! One….Two….Thr-"

"Ashley, what are you doing here?" Spencer asked sweetly, opening the door.

"Coffee?" the brunette offered cutely, giving Spencer a toothy smile as she waved the paper cup in the air a bit.

Spencer stepped aside to grant her entry, embarrassed straight away about the condition of her home. Sure her quarters were neat, and the bathroom because she used it _way_ more than Glen, but her bachelor brother definitely left his mark (and scent) everywhere else.

"You woke up this early on a Monday to bring coffee?"

"I woke up this early for training. Which you need to get ready for," Ashley said, surveying her surroundings, picking up the latest _Surf_ magazine off the card table, turning to the dog-eared page and smiling when she saw it.

"Training?"

"Yes. You're unofficial, but you still need to work out with the team,"

"Wait. What are you talking about?" Spencer asked, slowly pulling the coffee cup away from her mouth.

"It's not 100 percent yet so I don't want you to get that excited but there is a possibility that you may be joini-"

Ashley didn't get out the rest.

Spencer just launched herself into her, wrapping her arms around her torso tightly in a big bear hug.

Ashley's breath hitched, completely involuntarily. She just suddenly became very aware of the fact that Spencer was not wearing a bra.

"I cannot believe this," Spencer squealed, elated beyond belief.

"Uh…yeah. You can let go now," the brunette murmured out, stiffening to the contact in spite of her best efforts. She wasn't really a hug person.

"Like I said, nothing's official," she maintained as Spencer pulled away, her face aflame with embarrassment.

"Still, you save my life and then maybe get me a spot on the hottest surf squad around…" Spencer left the statement open ended, just gazing at the girl in front of her in silent awe. "Thank you."

The sincerity in the short yet sweet proclamation gave Ashley pause. She was on the brink of being swept away or just saying something incredibly stupid. Luckily for her, she settled for something in between those two extremes.

"Yeah, well, you need to put a rush on it. If we're not there in another hour we have to run. And I'm not a big fan of running,"

"Right," Spencer said, turning away hastily, heading towards her 'room'. She must have completely forgotten where she was because the tank top hit the floor before the curtain that was her door closed behind her.

Ashley wouldn't forget though.

**--**

Not fifteen minutes later Spencer was climbing into the passenger side of Ashley's black Silverado z 71 (because all surfers must at least own one truck) when it suddenly dawned on her.

"How did you know where I lived?"

"I asked around. It's not that hard Carlin,"

"But no one even knows me here. Except Brandon,"

Ashley shifted uncomfortably at the mention of her close friend but this went unnoticed by Spencer. "I have connections, remember? I can get any kind of information I want to about you."

"I don't know if I should be creeped out or impressed,"

"I could say the same about you. Don't think I didn't notice the stack of _Surf_ magazines with every one of my articles marked,"

Spencer turned to look out her window to hide her blush. She wasn't very successful.

"It's alright. I know I'm like the greatest surfer in the world. You don't have to be embarrassed," Ashley joked, delighting in making Spencer squirm. "You probably have posters of me on your wall."

Spencer's spine was replaced with a metal rod as she sat straight up, immediately alarmed.

"Oh shit, you do," Ashley laughed, loving this more than she imagined.

"Fine," Spencer lamented. "I'm a fan of the sport. You happen to be the best there is…for now."

The slight yet intentional dig did not go unnoticed by the more experienced player. "Pretty confident there aren't we, rookie?"

"Oh I wasn't talking about myself, but it's nice to know that you think I could be that good," Spencer fired back, a smug grin on her face. She had successfully turned the tables, yet again.

"Nice," Ashley said, impressed. "Glad to see you're starting to think on your toes."

"I think I have to around you," the blonde replied ruefully, earning a chuckle from her counterpart.

**--**

"Look, just stay out here until I call for you, 'kay?" the brunette told her, opening the door to the training center and slipping inside.

"Sure," Spencer replied, sitting on one of the benches outside the facility.

"You're late Ash," Kyla grunted, as she went down for another sit-up.

"I am not. I had a run to make. Sean knew about it,"

"Whatever, come spot me," Madison said, moving to lie back on the weight lift bench.

"Just a sec. I have an announcement to make!" she yelled, calling to attention the guys, Tasha, her sister, and Madison. "I know we're a very deep team already but we can always use more surfers. And we all said that if we ever saw someone with raw potential, we'd join 'em, no hesitation right?" she asked, gradually moving toward the door.

"Ash, what did you do?" Kyla asked, sitting up on the matted floor, holding onto her ankles.

"I didn't do anything," she retorted, easing open the door and motioning for Spencer to come nearer. "Just…you guys remember Spencer," she finished, yanking the blonde through the door and into the room, never taking her eyes off of the blonde in question.

Kyla and Tasha shared a confused look.

"Oh. Hell. No."

"Madison…" Ashley warned.

"She's a rookie. I'm sorry but KaTo doesn't join anyone who hasn't had a few comps under their belt," the Latina continued, never wilting under Ashley's glare.

"I'm gonna have to second that Ash," Aiden said, reluctantly agreeing with Madison. "She's not ready. Did you see the match last week?"

Spencer's eyes drifted down to the floor under the scrutiny.

"We all wipe-out from time to time Aiden,"

"Not in comps and…not like that," he added, trying to at least be sensitive of the girl's feelings.

"That's what training is for. And practice runs, and all the other stuff we do to get better,"

Brandon finally spoke up. He'd been silently regarding the situation, both the fact that Spencer may or may not be joining KaTo and the fact that Spencer had shown up _with_ Ashley.

Guess which one weighed more heavily on his mind?

"I don't think it's a good idea either,"

"What?!" Spencer and Ashley asked, incredulous.

"Weren't you just singing her praises a few days ago?" Ashley commented, folding her arms across her chest after flipping her shades back over her eyes.

"That was before the incident Ashley," he fired back, giving her a pointed look.

"It really doesn't matter what you think anyway. I talked it over with Trent. He said it's fine. Therefore, it's fine,"

"Then I guess that's settled then," Aiden said. Not in a way. Just making a declaration and everyone went back to doing whatever they were doing before Ashley sprung the news on them.

**--**

Brandon drug Ashley away to talk leaving Spencer standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. Tasha and Kyla made a silent agreement to play peacemaker.

"Welcome on Spencer," Kyla said warmly, holding out her hand which Spencer took. "I'm Kyla."

"I know," Spencer admitted shyly. "I know all about you guys. Big fan."

"So I guess my introduction's unnecessary?" Tasha asked.

"Not really,"

"Good. Introductions suck and don't worry about everybody else. Some people are resistant to change," Tasha muttered, jerking a thumb in Madison and Aiden's direction.

"I see," Spencer mumbled dejectedly.

"You know what?" Kyla half-exclaimed, getting excited in a second, like she tends to do. "We should take Spencer on a tour of the center. Show her the ropes since she's gonna be around."

"Sounds good to me," Tasha said with a shrug. "What about you?" she asked, looking at Spencer.

"I'm in," she said as she allowed herself to be whisked away.

**--**

"I know what you're doing," Brandon said, coming to a stop just outside of the training room.

"What the hell are you talking about Bran?"

"You're into her. Admit it,"

"I'm not," she answered, far too quickly for his liking.

"You're lying. I know you are. And, for the record, I'm not letting her go that easily,"

Ashley's smirk decided to come out and play. "Is that a challenge?"

"Take it however you want,"

"Please Brandon, you don't stand a chance," the brunette chuckled as she said this.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but Spencer's not gay,"

"Since when has that mattered," the brunette fired back.

"Just back off alright. I saw her first and…and I like her," he mumbled, suddenly wilting, pouting a little bit even.

Her smile dropped, the alarm in her eyes would have been evident if it weren't for those damn shades. "Look it doesn't matter now anyway. She's on the team. No hanky panky between team members, 'member?"

"What about Aiden and Kyla?" 

"That's…different,"

"And you and Tash-"

"Are history. Besides, that was different too," 

"How?

"It didn't involve you," she said, pushing him suddenly and taking off in the direction of the elevators she just saw Tasha, Kyla, and Spencer board.

She made it just as the doors were closing, waving goodbye to a breathless and slightly distraught looking Brandon.

"So," she said, catching her breath and heaving an arm around Spencer's shoulders. "Where are we going?"


	7. Where is this Headed?

Sean was quickly losing patience with the young man. "And your point?"

"Dude, she's gonna sleep with her?" Brandon whined.

"So fuckin' what? You and Ash trade chicks back and forth all the time,"

"But she does something to 'em man. And, I dunno, Spencer's different. She's special,"

"Oh my God. You're sprung," Sean exclaimed, loudly.

"Shut the fuck up man, no I'm not,"

"You are, and you're scared Ashley's gonna take your boo away, aww,"

"Sean man, come on,"

"Look, if you're so worried about it. Step up your game. Let her know how you feel. Then this whole thing with Ashley will be null and void,"

"But, the way Ashley looks at her man. And she fucking saved her life and got her on the team. And now she's training her-"

"Whoa, what?" Sean asked, holding his cup a breath away from his face. He placed a consoling hand on Brandon's shoulder. "Man, you're screwed."

**--**

"Okay, new scenario: wind conditions are making the break choppy and your board's dipping on the right tail side. What do you do?" Ashley asked, making sure to keep her body weight pressed lightly down on the blonde's feet.

Spencer's abs contracted slightly as she sat back up with ease. "I shift out of the sweet spot to accommodate for the change in direction and try to stay steady within the direction of travel," she managed to get out in one breath, watching the brunette's smile get wider with every word.

"Very good Blondie. You're a fast learner," Ashley said, probably staring into those perfect blue eyes a little longer than she should. "Okay, next question," she said, pushing Spencer back down by her shoulders, to which the other girl could do nothing but groan.

"Ugh, Ashley. I'm so sick of this. It's been a couple of weeks now. When am I gonna go out on the water?"

"When you prove you won't die if you do," Ashley said, as she came back up for another completed sit-up.

"You're exaggerating,"

"No, I'm not. I was there. You were dying Spence," the brunette said softly, raising a hand when Spencer came up this time, effectively halting her and then using the same hand to brush a stray lock of blonde hair aside and out of her eyes. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

Spencer felt herself being drawn in, falling deeper into an alternate existence where the laws of time and space no longer existed. But, just as quickly as it had happened, it was over.

"So, that's why we're doing all of this. We need you in shape if you're trying to even come close to surfing with the best,"

"Your ego knows no bounds," Spencer said, rolling her eyes, going down for another sit-up.

"Nope. And my confidence is only surpassed by my hotness," Ashley smirked, daring Spencer to respond.

"No comment," Spencer smartly replied, with a smirk all her own.

**--**

"Is she still with that girl?" Karen asked, stirring some concoction in a pot on the kitchen stove. Aiden sat at the kitchen table, handing Michelle whatever color crayon she asked for. Which was "lellow" because that was the only color she knew.

"Her name is Tasha, Karen. And you know she's not," Aiden said, bristling.

"Whatever. They're still living together,"

"Brandon and Tasha are living together and you know it. Why are you such a bitch to her anyway? She is your sister,"

Karen covered Michelle's ears up before she hissed at him. "Watch your mouth. And I know she's my sister. She also made some pretty bad life choices that I'm sure you're aware of."

"She didn't choose to be gay,"

Again Karen abandoned her dinner and clamped her hands around the young girl's ears. "Do not say that word around her."

"You're so full of it Karen. I don't know why Ashley bothers to take care of you,"

"I'm only around because you insist on keeping up this charade. If it weren't for you Michelle and I would be long gone,"

"If you ever think about taking my daughter…" Aiden trailed off here, letting the seriousness of his tone convey everything that was left unsaid.

Karen held his glare for few moments more before going back to her dinner. "You're welcome to stay for dinner if you'd like."

"I'm good thanks,"

"Daddy, don go," Michelle said, pouting adorably.

"I have to pumpkin. But you know what, maybe tomorrow, before Daddy's competition you and I could go out for sundaes?"

"Yay! With Auntee Ashwee?" she inquired, looking like she might explode if he said no.

"Of course," he said, holding out his arms for the hug he knew was coming.

"Do you think-"

"Don't start with me Karen. She's going."

And that was that.

For now.

**--**

"Alright break time," Ashley said, tossing Spencer a bottled water, which the blonde caught mid-flight, never breaking her stride on the treadmill. She stopped the machinery, walking off with the "jell-o legs" you get after being on a treadmill for an extended period of time, and moved to sit next to Ashley on one of the many exercise mats.

"So…"

"Yeah?"

"You leave a boy back home?"

Spencer spluttered as the unexpected and frank question caught her completely off-guard.

"Wow, don't die. It was just a question," Ashley said, handing her a fresh towel and giving her a few blows to the back.

"I'm…good," she coughed out, thumping a fist against her chest. "Why would you ask me that?"

"Just trying to keep you on your toes Carlin. Never let your guard down,"

"Is that why you always wear the shades?"

"I'm not wearing 'em now,"

"Does that mean that you're unguarded right now? And if I ask the right questions I might get some exclusive insight into the inner workings of Ashley Davies?" Spencer teased, taking another swig of water.

"Maybe," Ashley replied. She didn't say it in a way though, and, with the look she was fixing the other girl with, Spencer thought she may have been serious. "We aren't talking about me though. And you're avoiding my question."

"There's no one special," Spencer said, shrugging. Then getting an idea, "What about you?" she asked, with a grin, containing her laughter when Ashley's eyes bugged out of her head and she nearly dropped her water bottle.

"Not anymore," she replied. "But I'm sure you know that. You did see my 'friend' at the party, right?"

"Girlfriend?" Spencer asked, the hopefully nonchalant question coming out more pressed than anything else.

"Uh, no," Ashley said, trying to keep a smile hidden. "And why aren't you running for the hills?"

"Why would I?"

"I don't know. Most straight girls get all weird when they find out I'm gay. Like I'm gonna jump 'em or something,"

"Who said I was straight?" Spencer asked slyly, this time not able to hold back her laughter at Ashley's more than shocked face.

"I'm sorry," she said still laughing. "That was just too good to pass on. I'm not gay though. Just…man, the look on your face."

"You're going to pay for that one Carlin," Ashley said, getting up and starting a light jog in place. Spencer rolled her eyes and moved to stand next to her, stretching out her calves, nearly jumping out of her skin when she felt her lips brush against her ear. "And don't knock it 'til you try it," she whispered, taking off in a sprint, leaving a dumbfounded blonde staring into space. "Come on Carlin! Move your butt!"


	8. We Push Each Other

-----

Thanks a lot for the re-reviews and to you new readers, I hope you're enjoying the ride. Uh, let's see, the feedback is tremendous so keep it coming. It's really helping me get back into the writing mode. So, thanks again. Lurve ya'll.

-----

"Hey you!" Brandon called out before she reached him. "Long time no see."

"Well, that's because your team mate sees fit to try to kill me on a daily basis,"

"As long as she's keeping it PG-13," Brandon murmured, taking Spencer's bag off of her.

"Huh?"

"I asked whether or not you were thirsty," he cleaned up, smiling at her.

"No, I'm good,"

"So you're still just a spectator," he asked her as he sat back down in the beach chair.

"Yeah," she mumbled out, sitting beside him. "Not my decision but, what am I gonna do?"

"You could say something about it," he said, turning to her as if he had some burning secret perched on the tip of his tongue. "I dunno. It doesn't make much sense as to why Ashley would leave someone as talented as you on standby. Unless…" he trailed off here, baiting her.

"Unless what?" she took it.

"Unless she was trying to stave off her best competition," Brandon finished quickly, shrugging in the process.

"She…she wouldn't do that, would she?"

"Ashley likes to win,"

"Hell yeah I do," Ashley said, smirking, and only catching the last end of the conversation.

"Were your ears burning?" Brandon asked her, squinting up into the sun.

"No. I smelled your bullshit from a mile away. Spencer, you don't have to sit with this loser. My sister's here with Michelle. You can go hang with them,"

"I'm fine right here," Spencer fired back, her own eyes hidden behind shaded glasses.

Ashley looked away from the feisty blonde for a moment. "I thought you were competing," she said to Brandon, a little off kilter what with Spencer's tone and all.

"I pulled out. Groin injury," he said, with a shit-eating grin that let her know he was lying. "So, I'm just gonna hang, you know…with Spencer," he added, detecting the slight tightness in her jaw.

"Fine," Ashley said, taking one last long look at the blonde before stalking off.

**--**

The crowd groaned as Ashley wiped out again. Her second of the afternoon.

A fact that was not missed by Spencer, especially because the annoying announcers they were sitting next to kept obnoxiously reminding her.

Announcer Number One: And down she goes again. I've never seen Ashley surf this badly. She keeps this up and she won't even make it to semis, Donna.

Announcer Number Two: She seems distracted Ted. A little unfocused. Somehow she ended up with an okay score in her first set. But I don't know how well she'll fair with the judges after this second run.

**--**

Ashley didn't even bother to look up when her scores came in. She plodded through the wet sand, board tucked under her arm.

Making it back to the Team KaTo pitch, she collapsed into her waiting chair, Tasha and Kyla immediately moving away to give her room.

They'd been on the receiving end of one of Ashley's temper tantrums and it wasn't pretty.

However, they were pleasantly surprised when one never came, even more so when Ashley unscrewed the cap of a water bottle, taking a hearty swig, before dumping the rest over her.

They were the most surprised however when a shadow came to loom over Ashley and she never looked up.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Spencer asked her, hands on her hips.

"Where's Brandon?" Ashley asked her, kicking the sand a little.

"What has he got to do with you crapping up out there?" Spencer asked pointedly, and Ashley slunk lower in her chair.

"You're dipping straight into the tunnel, giving yourself minimal if any wave time. I mean, jumping straight in every run fighting against the flow until bam! You're getting pounded by white water,"

"I know what I'm doing Spencer, I'm not stupid," Ashley roared at her.

"You have to be if you're doing _that_ on purpose," Spencer fired back, never skipping a beat. Also, not intimidated in the least.

"It's just a stupid comp Spencer! Why do you care anyway?!" Ashley yelled at her, causing somewhat of a scene.

Spencer just shook her head at her, pulling her glasses off, and doing the same with Ashley's, not the least bit surprised when the brunette allowed her to.

She had nowhere to hide, not that she could with the way Spencer was looking at her, and that scared her way more than losing her first competition in months.

"We're the same Ashley," she started quietly, kneeling in front of the girl. "And when you're drowning, I can feel it. You saved me before, so now I'm throwing you a lifesaver. You're better than this Ash. I know you are. So, just get out there and show me…show me why I'll always be second-best," Spencer finished with a smirk and an unexpected hug.

When she pulled away, Ashley had a funny little smile on her face, eyes blazing and nose crinkling. It was quite possibly the cutest thing ever.

"Thanks," Ashley told her sincerely, but Spencer only laughed.

"Don't thank me. Get out there and win me some money!"

**--**

Spencer watched the rest of the comp with the team.

**--**

"And to celebrate the best come from behind performance in surfing history…we have one extra large, extra cheesy pizza," Aiden said, sitting the pie on the table.

"No olives?" Ashley asked him, even though she was inspecting the pizza herself.

"No olives," he assured her, laughing when she dug in immediately after that.

They were back at what was officially Madison and Ashley's apartment. But what with how many people crashed there it could very easily belong to any one of them.

"You guys heard from Brandon?" Tasha asked, reaching for a slice only to have her hand slapped away.

"This is mine," Ashley grumbled out through a mouthful of pizza. "Your scraps are over there."

"Whatever," Tasha said, rolling her eyes. "I asked a question."

"He sulked off about an hour ago," Aiden said, kicking a kitchen chair out for her as she came back over.

"I don't know what's been up with him lately. He's been hella moody,"

"Maybe he's pmsing," Ashley offered, choking immediately afterward.

"That's what you get for being mean," Spencer admonished lightly, as she too, walked into the kitchen.

Tasha's eyes bugged out of her head when Spencer reached for Ashley's pizza and successfully retrieved a slice.

"Aren't you gonna say something?" she asked Ashley, incredulous.

"She's new. She doesn't know the rules yet," Ashley dismissed easily.

"Rules?" Spencer questioned.

"We kind of don't touch Ashley's pizza," Aiden explained.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Spencer said, sheepishly, handing the slice she was about to dig into back to Ashley.

"Keep it," Ashley said then tried to cover it up quickly. "I don't know where your hands have been."

"If it's been anywhere your mouth has been I'd say you made a wise decision," Spencer shot back.

"Damn," Aiden said, cracking up with Tasha. "That was a good one, Spence."

"She's gonna fit in pretty good around here," Tasha added, high-five-ing the girl.

Ashley, still reeling, just kept on munching on her pizza, fighting back the swirly feeling in her stomach.

"Sorry to interrupt guys," Kyla said, poking her head into the kitchen. "But Glen's on the phone for you Spencer.

Spencer stood to go answer it. Unbeknownst to her, her movements were being surreptitiously watched by a certain brunette.

Unbeknownst to the brunette, her actions were being recorded by her friends.

Aiden winked at Tasha, popping another can of beer open and leaning back in his chair.

"So Tash, what do you think about Spencer?" he asked, loud enough to startle and then draw Ashley's attention.

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, she's hot right?" Ashley stopped chewing.

"She's alright," Tasha conceded, trying not to smile. "She's definitely not bad to look at."

"I know. I'm just saying, if I weren't so into Kyla, I'd definitely try to holla." (A/N: Is anybody else cracking up at Aiden saying holla?)

"I would if she wasn't straight," Tasha said, grinning a bit, not at the prospect, but at the way Ashley just tried to hide the fact that she just choked on a pepperoni.

"If who wasn't straight?" Spencer asked, rejoining the trio, getting only blank stares in response.

"I'm sorry…did I interrupt something?"

They stared for a moment longer and then they all started talking at once.

"No, not at all. We were just being stupid,"

"Talking about, you know, celebrities and stuff,"

"People we like and …yeah,"

"Okay," Spencer accepted, too tired to really care. "Hey, is it alright if I crash here tonight? Glen said he had to stay the next shift and wouldn't be getting off until like four."

"You gotta ask Ash," Aiden said with a shrug. "Or Mads? In your case, I'd stick with Ash."

"So, how 'bout it Ashley, can I stay?" Spencer asked, tilting her head and even pouting a bit.

"Yeah Ash, can she stay?" Tasha emulated.

"On one condition," Ashley said, and Spencer waited for it. "Answer this question: Who's the baddest surfer on the scene?"

Spencer rolled her eyes as Aiden and Tasha laughed. "Ash,"

"You _damn_ right."

**--**

Now, how it happened that Spencer ended up having to sleep in Ashley's bed was another one of those weirdly coincidental but completely planned out things.

Madison does not share her bed, and Aiden was bunking with Kyla. Tasha stole the sofa bed, claiming that it'd "be too weird" to sleep with Ashley considering not too long ago they were sleeping together for real.

It was a lame excuse and Ashley knew it, even as she was tossing Tasha a spare pillow and blanket.

"Guess I'm sleeping on the floor then," Spencer mumbled, turning to head out into the living room after Tasha.

"Don't be ridiculous Spencer," Tasha said, halting the younger girl with her words. "You can sleep with _Ashley_," she said, closing the bedroom door behind her, leaving Spencer standing awkwardly in the middle of Ashley's bedroom, clutching a pillow.

"I don't have cooties blondie. You can get on the bed," Ashley said, climbing in herself.

Spencer shook her head at the brunette, smiling slightly. "I just wanted to know what side of the bed you slept on first," she said, climbing in after her, the mattress molding to accommodate her.

"This bed is really comfortable," she said, settling further, turning on her side, facing Ashley.

"Ew. Are you one of those chicks that make endless comments about pointless observations they have until they fall asleep?" Ashley mumbled out, eyes on the ceiling.

"Okay, first of all, I'm not a chick," Spencer said, quirking an eyebrow. "Second, they're not pointless," she too mumbled, somewhat sheepishly.

"You're right. Your observations are enthralling," Ashley deadpanned, cracking a smile as the bed shook beside her.

"I'm going to sleep," Spencer told her, falling asleep almost immediately after, Ashley not too far behind her.

"Good night, blondie,"

**--**

Ashley awoke first.

She felt it first across her back, the pressure of another body, pressed tightly into hers.

But she came home alone last night, in fact, the only girl she remembered having in her bed was….

Spencer.

Spencer's face was pressed into her back, right between her shoulder blades, her slow breaths fluttering across the skin of her shoulder, tickling slightly. She felt the blonde's left arm wrapped tightly around her torso, her warms fingers spread out across the bare skin revealed by her ridden up tank top. The other arm was folded up tightly between them, Spencer's wrist pressing slightly into her middle back. Spencer's lower half appeared to be very active in her sleep as well, having completely entangled her legs with Ashley.

Suddenly, a crippling thought entered Ashley's mind: How was she gonna extricate herself without waking Spencer?

She didn't have too long to dread on it though because Spencer's internal clock operated along the same wavelength as Ashley's and she was stirring at the moment.

She stretched languidly, a move that pressed herself even further into Ashley, albeit unknowingly. She didn't stay in the dark for long.

"Shit," she whispered out, realizing instantly where she was, snatching back away from Ashley with a quickness. She pulled her arms away, easily disentangling her top half from the brunette. Her legs were a totally different story.

"I'm…so sorry," she said, quietly, pulling the blankets away so that she and Ashley could become separate people again.

"It's not that big of a deal," Ashley rushed to say, pulling the sheets away too. They were _really_ tangled up together.

Spencer finally got one leg away, swinging it out of the bed, then finding the other one quite easily.

That's when Ashley realized she wasn't wearing any pants.

"Didn't you go to bed with pajama bottoms? I mean, I know I handed 'em to you,"

"It got hot," Spencer defended slightly, feeling her skin flush.

"Yep. That happens sometimes when people are near me," Ashley smirked.

"I'll find 'em and put 'em on," Spencer said, getting out of the bed, and moving about the room, oblivious to the other girl's eyes on her.

"I didn't peg you for a cuddler," Ashley teased, leaning up on her elbow, under the pretense of helping Spencer find the pants. She was really just looking at…well Spencer.

"I didn't think I was one either," the blonde muttered out, standing back upright, putting her hands on her hips. "Where the hell is those pants?" she wondered allowed.

"_Oh_, you're looking for the _pants_," Ashley started, pulling cotton cloud covered pajama bottoms from behind her back. "My bad."

"You're evil," Spencer said, snatching them away from her, hurriedly putting them on.

"So, what are you doing today?" Ashley asked her, trying to appear casual.

"Let's see. It's my off day so I plan on staying far, far, away from you," the blonde said, slipping into her shoes. "I'm gonna go home and try to do something to my 'room'. And then, oh yeah, Brandon's taking me out."

"Brandon?"

"Yeah,"

"So, you like him huh?" Ashley asked, finally moving to get out of bed, swinging her legs over the edge so that her back was towards Spencer, making her hard to read.

"I dunno," Spencer admitted shyly, tucking some hair behind her ear. "He's cute."

"Meh,"

"You don't think he's cute?"

"I-"

"Oh, my bad. Not your type," Spencer teased, rolling her eyes slightly when Ashley turned to look at her.

"Nope," was all Ashley said.

"So, what is your type?"

"Before I answer that, why are you still here Carlin?"

"I need a ride,"

"Why don't you call Brandon?" Ashley asked her, raising an eyebrow.

"'Cause you're here," Spencer told her, no trace of amusement on her face.

"Well…uh…"

"So, I don't have to waste my minutes," Spencer added, smirking triumphantly.

"Good one, blondie," Ashley said, finally getting up. She sauntered over to where Spencer was standing, reaching behind her to grab a robe, her body coming dangerously close to Spencer's.

"I'm going for a shower and then we can go," Ashley whispered in her ear, moving back once she grabbed the article of clothing. "You can come keep me company if you want," she added, trying not to laugh as she saw Spencer trying to get her throat to work.

There weren't any more words shared as Ashley walked out of the room and down the hall to the bathroom.


	9. The RunAround

"Hold on," Ashley said into her cell phone, covering the speaker as she pulled it away from her ear. "How is it that you were rushing me to get ready and you're just now getting into my car?" she asked the blonde, who merely shrugged and smiled, looking at the ground as she hopped in.

"This is different," she said, admiring the vehicle. It had to have been a classic or something. In all honesty it was a 2002 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage. Black on black, gray interior with black trim.

"Yeah, this is my baby," Ashley said, petting the steering wheel lovingly.

"It's…different,"

"You mean it's old," Ashley commented smartly, before turning her attention back to the phone. "Who am I talking to? Just this homeless girl who needed a ride," she said and Spencer rolled her eyes. "…Yeah, I'm not worried about the rabies…Because I'm nice," Spencer chuckled a bit, then harder as Ashley's eyes grew wide. "I am nice," she shouted incredulously into the receiver.

"And dreadfully rude," Spencer added.

"What are you talking about?"

"You. Your car etiquette is appalling. You don't ignore the person you're riding in a car with,"

"Hang on Angel," Ashley said into the receiver, before pulling the phone away. "I'm not ignoring you. I'm sparing my brain the torture. You bore me Carlin."

"I love you too," Spencer said, sounding unbelievably sincere. It was quite possibly the best comeback for Miss Davies.

Whatever witty remark Ashley had on the tip of her tongue died a violent death leaving only thoughts and visions of rainbows, puppies, and other fluffy things. Quickly shaking the cobwebs, she hung up her phone even as Angela (Angel) was asking very loudly if Ashley was still there.

"You okay Ash?" Spencer asked sweetly, raising a coy eyebrow.

"You think you're pretty cute don't you?"

"I don't think that actually. I _know_ it," Spencer replied cheekily.

"Oh, you _know_ it?"

"Yep. Come to think of it, I'm pretty _and_ cute,"

"No arguments there blondie," Ashley said, turning the dial on the radio. "They breed 'em well in New Jersey I'm guessin'."

"Nope. Just me. Everyone else in that state is New York rejects,"

"God. What did you eat for breakfast? You're crazy with the zingers today,"

"Sadly, you're not,"

"Well I don't warm up until noon, sorry,"

"Well then maybe you can finally answer my question,"

"Um…drawing a blank," Ashley said playfully.

"I figured you would. What. Is. Your. Type?"

"Why. So. Interested?"

"I'm not. You just asked me a personal question and I'm returning the favor,"

"Psh. I already knew you liked Brandon," Ashley tried to dismiss.

"And now you're officially stalling. Look, if you're afraid to tell me-"

"What?! Afraid?! I'm not,"

"Okay. I'm just saying, if you are-"

"There is no if because I'm not. I'll tell you 'my type',"

"Alright. If you insist,"

Ashley took a deep breath. "What do you mean by type?"

"God, Ashley," Spencer groaned, half a second away from kicking her dashboard; a fact Ashley duly noted.

"There is no sand in here to kick blondie so don't go getting all Bruce Lee on my car,"

"Ha ha," Spencer remarked dryly.

"Fine. I don't have a type. Are you happy now?"

"Everyone has a type,"

"Well, I don't. I want what I want," Ashley said with a shrug. "There's nothing set in stone."

"So anyone's fair game, huh?"

"Anyone with a pulse," Ashley joked, turning into Spencer's complex's park. Spencer looked surprisingly less spirited than she had just moments ago.

"Yeah," Spencer said, popping open her door.

"Training tomorrow morning Carlin. Don't forget!" Ashley called after her. "And find your own ride! I'm not picking you up!" she yelled some more after not getting a reply.

"You just want me to say something don't you?" Spencer asked/yelled, turning around before she got to the door. "I mean, you'll keep yelling stuff until I say something."

"You know me so well," Ashley grinned, sliding her shades in place.

**--**

"Hey Mads," she said, standing over the girl, blatantly admiring her scantily clad body.

We're talking sports bra some track shorts folks.

"Tasha," Madison replied shortly.

"Aw man. I can't ever catch you in a good mood," Tasha said, earning a chuckle from the other girl.

"I'm sorry. Yes Tasha?"

"Much better," the taller girl mused, joining her on the row machine, sitting in front of her. "I have a favor to ask."

"Quit staring at me," Madison said, not annoyed, just acknowledging. "And nope."

"But I haven't asked it yet,"

Madison took one long look at her. "A…double-date? No."

"God damn. How do you do that?" Tasha asked in awe. Madison just shrugged.

"You're easy."

"That's what they tell me. Seriously, come with me,"

"Girl or guy?" Madison asked, after much hesitation.

"Um…both?" Tasha said slowly, laughing when Madison's eyes practically popped out of her skull. "I'm just kidding. Man, that was good. Ha. No, it's a guy and his friend is supposed a dead ringer for this guy…on some show on the N, South of ….something. Anyway, total hottie."

"That's blind-date talk for butt-ugly," Madison groaned, still reluctant. "You're lucky I still owe you for the pink-eye incident."

"Yes, you do, don't you?" Tasha shuddered, remembering the asswipe she'd endured for Madison. He had an overbite and halitosis. And pit stains. Turns out the idiot must not wash his hands either because within an hour, Tasha's eye was red and watering. As was his.

"Yep. But after this we're even,"

"Totally," Tasha beamed, giving her an unwanted hug before sliding off the rower and walking away.

**--**

**Later…**

"So, Mom called today," Glen said, leaning against the wall, outside of Spencer's room.

He heard her sigh heavily. "What'd she want?"

"Just to see how we were doing," he said absently, playing with the bottom of his shirt. "She was acting pretty strange actually. Kept asking all these strange questions…"

"Like?" Spencer prompted.

"Had we run into anyone strange? And had anyone been calling us? Just…it was all very weird,"

"I thought Mom was the queen of weird. We decided that when we were kids,"

"Yeah," he said inattentively, shaking his head slightly to clear the thoughts. "Yeah, you're right. What are you doing tonight? Feel like hanging out with big bro?"

"I…um…have a date actually,"

"With pretty boy?"

"He has a name,"

"Yep. Pretty Boy Surfer Dude. Has a nice ring to it don't ya' think?"

"You are ridiculous," she said, pushing aside her curtain and stepping out into the narrow hallway.

"I need to have a talk with him before you leave," Glen said, eyeing her outfit. Not in any kind of perverted incestuous kind of way. He just needed to make sure her attire met big brother standards.

"Ugh," Spencer groaned, slipping on some shoes.

"I just need to go over the basics with him. No touching, no thinking about touching, no thinking about thinking about touching," Glen tick-marked the points of emphasis on his fingers.

"You're bizarre," Spencer said, just as there was a knock on the door. She went to open it and was surprised by what she saw.

The bouquet of flowers greeted her instantly as they were thrust into her face. They were all her favorites: sunflowers, Gerberas, lilies, roses, snapdragons. She could probably go on but her thoughts escaped her for a moment at the incredibly sweet and well thought out gesture.

"These are beautiful," she whispered, her speaking voice on vacation.

"Not nearly as beautiful as you, blondie," she said, moving the bouquet aside, laughing instantly when she saw Spencer's extremely shocked face.

"You jerk," Spencer said, snatching the flowers away, leveling her gaze at the brunette. "I'm keeping these."

"They're for you," Ashley said, still laughing slightly. "I'm trying to apologize for ignoring you this morning."

Spencer turned red in spite of herself. "You didn't have to."

"I know I didn't have to. I wanted to," Ashley replied lightly, as if it was no big deal. Spencer looked away from her shyly. "Okay, in all honesty, someone sent them to my house on accident and I just happened to notice that they were the same ones you mentioned liking in your team bio."

"Thank you Ashley," Spencer said softly, hugging the flowers to her chest.

There it was again. That staring game, where they looked at each other for very long periods of time. Only, if they really paid attention, time itself stood still when they were caught up in each other like this.

"Is that him Spence?" Glen asked, stepping out into the doorway. He'd waited long enough he figured.

"Oh, sorry Glen," Spencer said, finally coming to. "Um…false alarm. It's just Ashley."

"Hey, I resent you saying 'just Ashley'. I'm not just anything," the brunette replied, a little chagrined. Well, not really but Spencer didn't know that.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"Kidding Spence," she smiled.

"Oh," Spencer smiled back.

"What's with the flowers?" Glen asked, perplexed.

"I was gonna ask the same thing," Brandon said, approaching them, emerging from nowhere.

"Uh, there you are," Spencer said, latching onto his arm. "Let's go," she said, tugging him onward.

He glanced back at Ashley, and they had a brief glaring match before Spencer successfully dragged him off.

"Don't keep her out too late!" Glen yelled after them, before adding, "Asshole," under his breath.

"You don't like Brandon, do you?" Ashley accurately guessed.

"Do you have to ask?" Glen said miserably. "She should just never date guys. It'll make my life a lot easier."

'You and me both buddy,' Ashley mused to herself before balking mentally. Did she just think that?

"Well, I was gonna hang with baby sis tonight but since she ditched me you feel like tossing back a few with me?" Glen offered, trailing his eyes not so innocently up and down the girl.

Mini-skirt, mini-tank…what's not to like?

Ashley's immediate thought was to decline the offer, but on second thought, she could simultaneously do some Brandon-bashing and learn some of the more intimate details of Spencer's life. Plus she could knock back a few beers.

'Sounds like a win-win to me,' she thought.

**--**

"Where are we going?"

"Only the best for the best," Brandon grinned, handing the car keys over to the valet.

"This place looks very expensive," Spencer said as an afterthought, lost in her surroundings.

"It's not that big of a deal," he assured her, walking up to the host. "Table for two for Harper please."

Spencer tentatively took a look around, feeling immediately intimidated. She was surrounded by beautiful people, important looking people. And here she was, a shy girl from New Jersey, completely out of her element.

"Imagine they're all in their underwear," Brandon whispered in her ear, making her laugh out loud as they were being escorted to their table, the outburst causing quite the stir.

"Why'd you have to do that for?" she hissed at him, as he took his seat after she took hers of course.

"Just trying to get you to breathe again. You were turning blue. It's a good look for your eyes but blue skin just screams _Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory_,"

"Oh my gosh, I love that movie," she gushed, eyes sparkling as she bounced slightly in her seat.

"It's the Oompa Loompas," he grinned, his brown eyes flashing as well.

"Oh you're right. They're so cute,"

"Not as cute as you," he said, looking a little shy, a rare occurrence for him. She just blushed, fiddling with the stem of her water glass.

"Well…" 

"I think we should order. What about you?" he asked her, saving her from having to respond his obviously flattering comment. He picked up his menu, his eyes the only thing visible now, but from the wrinkles under them she knew he was smiling.

"Yeah, let's order," she said, hiding her own smile behind her menu.

**--**

"So she started telling complete strangers that she didn't have a penis," Glen finished cracking up along with Ashley at the story's completion.

He was considerably buzzed and she…was not.

In spite of herself, and not really allowing herself to think that this was the reason why, Ashley didn't want to drown out the things she was finding out about Spencer with liquor. Even though she'd never admit it, she wanted to know more about the girl. And Glen, especially a half-shit-faced Glen, was a perfect contributor.

"You know Spencer has you on her wall. I mean, not _you_ you but, you know, you," Glen spluttered out. It was a complete change of topic, but Ashley had gotten used to the young man's constant subject-changes. The chronological order wasn't nearly as important as the subject matter.

And as long as that was Spencer, she was cool.

"Man, I thought she had a little crush on you. All we'd hear in Jersey was Ashley Davies this and Ashley Davies that. I was like, Spencer, go ahead and marry the girl. Come to think of it, she still talks about you a lot," he said, scrunching up his brow in concentration. The alcohol in his system canceling out his ability to dwell on any single thought too long. "Anyway, I swear, one time, when I said that she should marry you, she blushed." Ashley smiled here, her stomach doing jumping jacks.

"Yeah, but you know, now I know better 'cause she's with that _Brandon_ dude," Glen added ruefully, rubbing a hand over his face, as if trying to wipe the thought away.

Ashley just had a wicked idea.

It was cruel, mean, and there was a very real possibility that she'd piss more than a few of her friends.

'I don't care,' she thought with a grin.

**--**

"How is it?" Brandon asked, looking up as Spencer took a tentative bite out of…something.

That's the problem with fancy restaurants. You order the special and stuff because it looks good and the waiter makes it sound good but you can never know for sure what you're eating.

"It…tastes like…chicken," Spencer said, chewing with a lot less trepidation. "It's pretty good actually."

"Score," he said, digging into his now. Oh, and he wasn't making Spencer be the guinea pig. They drew straws to see who'd taste it first.

"I actually don't think I'm gonna be able to finish this," she said, looking up at him. They both broke into wide smiles and chuckles a short while after.

"I told you to chill on the breadsticks," he told her.

"Oh please. I know you're stuffed too. You're just trying to play it off,"

"You're not kidding. I need new pants, preferably ones with an elastic waistband," he said, placing his fork down and leaning back in his seat.

"Maybe if we sit here awhile, we'll have digested enough to at least take a few more bites," she reasoned, sitting back as well.

"Whatever you say," he mused aloud, winking at her. "It's your world tonight."

"And every night," Ashley said.

Spencer's eyes, which closed momentarily, shot open, the shock she must have been feeling was mirrored on Brandon's face.

"Hey Bran," she said, "What're those annoying bugs you can never get rid off?"

"Mosquitoes?"

"No, smaller,"

"Gnats?"

"Yes, that's it. I finally figured it out. Ashley, you are a gnat," she said, turning her head slightly to get a better glimpse at the girl.

"I wub you too Spencer. Quick question: Did you know you were eating eel?"

"SSSPENNNCCE." Glen said loudly, finally spotting the girl. "THERE YOU ARE. BEEN LOOKING ALL OVER FOR YA."

You'd think she'd be embarrassed by her brother's antics or be bothered by Ashley's obviously intentional coincidental appearance. But no. Only one thought was running on scroll through Spencer Carlin's mind.

'I. Ate. Eel.'

She didn't get a chance to digest it though.

Don't believe me?

Ask Ashley's shoes.


	10. Anything You Can Do

"Come on Ashley. I like her alright. I really do. Why are you doing this?" Brandon asked her. He couldn't actually believe he'd resorted to begging, and to be perfectly honest, neither could she. They were waiting for the Carlin kids to re-emerge from the bathroom. Ashley would've helped Spencer but the girl was past embarrassed about ruining her shoes.

Ashley didn't seem to mind too much. They were, in her words, "toss-aways". She failed to mention that they were $1,000 toss-aways.

"Brandon, stop whining," she said, rolling her eyes slightly.

"I mean, seriously, you could have any girl. _Any_ girl. Why are you after this one?" He was persistent. This subject was not going to die unless he got a straight answer from Ashley.

"I'm not after Spencer alright. She's nice and you know, we understand each other, but I'm not trying to get her," Ashley insisted, insulting his intelligence.

"I'm not stupid Ashley,"

"And, neither am I. As you pointed out, she's straight,"

"And that's never stopped you before. Look, Ash," he said seriously, waiting until she turned to look him in the eye. "This isn't a game for me. I'm talking about a relationship here. If all you want with Spencer is a little fling-"

"Fling?!" she interrupted, incredulous, then calmed herself. "I don't want to have a fling with Spencer."

"So, it's like I thought. It's more than that?" he asked, cringing internally.

She bit her lip, this conversation had her anxious as hell, and she didn't know why she felt compelled to tell it all at that moment, and to Brandon of all people. But, even with they were going through, he was still her friend. That was her first mistake. "It's more than that. She's…God, she's just great Bran. I mean, you know it. She's smart, and funny, and, let's face it, she's definitely not bad to look at. And us, she and I, we're completely on the same wavelength. I swear she knows what I'm thinking sometimes. And, it's kinda weird but I can read her like a book. I don't know Bran, I think…I think I like her…a lot."

Brandon stood completely rigid during the confession. He knew Ashley enough to know when she was being sincere or just drunk. In all honesty, she was probably both, but the buzz she was experiencing did not detract from the reality of her words. They were true, they were real, and they were scaring the crap out of him. He couldn't lose Spencer to Ashley, he couldn't. He had to do something about it, and something about it fast.

Really fast, because Spencer, who'd come back from the bathroom a few minutes ago, heard the whole thing.

**--**

"Ah, shit, shit, shit," Tasha cursed, holding onto her ankle. "I think it's pretty busted Madison," she cried out, trying to keep the tears at bay. The people dancing around them had moved to allow them a little space, but aside from that, they weren't that concerned about the girl on the floor.

Madison crouched over her, trying to help but not really knowing what to do. The two guys, Derrick and Matthew stood idly by, somber expressions plastered on their faces. The expressions were fake though, in fact the two gentlemen knew exactly what they were doing.

"Can you stand on it?" Madison asked her, placing a calming hand on the other girl's shoulder, trying to give her something.

Tasha shook her head rapidly, "It really fucking hurts."

"We gotta get you to a hospital," the Latina murmured, looping the girl's arm around her neck, before glaring at the boys. "Are either of you assholes gonna help me?" she roared, and the guys immediately jumped into action, gingerly lifting Tasha up off of the floor, carrying her out to the car.

Madison whipped out her cell phone.

**--**

Brandon flipped the phone closed, torn in more ways than one.

One: Madison just sent him a text. "911- meet me at hospital"

Two: Spencer had spent the entire time since she'd been back out of the bathroom, apologizing profusely to Ashley for ruining her shoes

Three: He was stuck with paying the bill, which included cleaning the vomit encrusted floor.

Four: Glen Carlin was droning on in his ear about some pointless drivel that only made sense when or if you were drunk.

"I gotta run," he blurted out suddenly, just needing to get the hell away from this scene, this place.

"Oh, okay guy," Glen said, clapping him hard on the back. "Thanks for coming out."

"Yeah," Brandon murmured, signing the receipt the waiter brought to him. He finally allowed himself to look at Spencer. "I…tonight…never mind," he finally just gave up. No point in trying to clean up that mess. Rising from his seat, he made it all the way to the entrance before a hand tugged him back, grasping his forearm slightly.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Spencer asked softly, waiting until his eyes met hers.

"I…there's an emergency or something and I have to go. You should get back to your brother," he said dismissively, before adding, "…and Ashley."

Spencer nodded pensively before smiling, somewhat assuredly. "Tonight was fun, for the most part."

"You mean the pre-eel part?" he asked, the right corner of his mouth turning up slightly.

She flushed deeply, smiling still. "Yes."

"It was. I enjoyed your company," he admitted, completely honest. "You may not know it, or maybe you do, but…" for a moment, just a moment he thought about revealing Ashley, but the thought slipped his mind as quickly as it entered. "…you're really something Spencer Carlin," he finished, brushing the hair that had fallen across her cheek back behind her ear. 'She'd have to be, right?' he thought. 'To make Ashley the way she was.'

"You're not too bad either, Brandon Harper," Spencer said, with a smile, her eyes twinkling. He should kiss her. It would be so perfect right now.

And she wanted him to, she really did.

But that's not how the story goes, and as Brandon leaned in, intent on claiming her lips with his own, his eyes caught Ashley's and the agony within them. Unwittingly, he changed directions, placing a gentle kiss on the girl's forehead.

"You have a good rest of the night Spencer," he murmured into her hair, pulling her into a hug. And without another word to her, he turned on his heel and was gone.

'You owe me Ashley Davies.'

**--**

"I'm telling you. Ashley is so into her. It's unbelievable. And I mean, _into_ into her. Not just wanting to jump her bones or anything," Aiden was telling her, being completely animated.

He and Kyla were enjoying a nice, private night out, at on of their favorite hangouts: Harvey's Diner. It was owned by Chelsea's family and sometimes the girl worked there…like tonight.

"Ew, come on Aide. She is my sister. I don't want to hear about her bone-jumping,"

"Aw, come on. She's only your half-sister. And it's not like I went into details. Although…"

"Stop. You know how it freaks me out that you've been there before…and Karen,"

"What can I say? I have an addiction for the Davies,"

"As long as you stay away from Adam we should be okay. Tell me though, how could you date an Ashley and then date Karen? I don't get that,"

Aiden mulled the question over as Chelsea came over with their food.

"Hey my little lovers. How's it going?"

"It goes great," Aiden smiled at her, helping her with their loaded trays. "How ya' doing these days Chels?"

"I'm great. Couldn't be better," she said, pulling a couple of straws out of her apron.

"I'd say. Sean's been a little lax in our exercise regime. You wouldn't have anything to do with that would ya?" Aiden asked slyly, chuckling a bit as Chelsea seemed to get just that much brighter.

"Yeah, well….um,"

"Aiden, leave her alone," Kyla reprimanded her entirely too nosy boyfriend. "I think you two are cute together," she added, giving Chelsea an encouraging smile.

"Thanks Kyla," the girl said, heading off to another table, but not before giving them the head's up. "ROXY's here."

Aiden and Kyla groaned simultaneously, counting down the seconds until a confrontation.

Three, Two, One – "Well, look who we have here guys. It's the Wonder Water Couple in the flesh," Megan said, standing in front of her group, arms folded tightly across her chest.

There's a bit of a background story here and this is how it goes. Ashley and Megan are archenemies for reasons apparent both on and off the wave. Megan is second in the polls behind Ashley, and has been for quite some time. However, it wasn't always that way. Megan Abubo used to be on top but all that changed when Ashley left Team Roxy to join KaTo, an up and coming team, which promised to make her the face of the franchise. Needless to say, that didn't go over too well with Meagan. Neither did the fact that Ashley stole her then girlfriend and teammate, Tasha with Brandon following suit. Yeah, there was bad blood between Roxy and KaTo and that wasn't changing anytime soon.

"Look, I really don't feel like trading barbs with you tonight Abooboo, so please, amscray," Kyla said, no hint of amusement on her face.

The other girl rolled her eyes at the jab, "It's Abubo, moron and I was just coming over to tell you to pass on a congratulations to Ashley."

Aiden narrowed his eyes at the girl, "And that's all?"

"Well, I just felt it was appropriate seeing as how you guys won't be able to compete in the Huntington Beach tournament," Megan said, her expression begging for them to ask why.

"And why wouldn't we?"

"You need at least 7 members on your team," she replied coyly, a smug grin on her face. She cast a non-to-subtle glance to Timmy, who snickered evilly.

"We have 7 members you idiot," Kyla shit back, annoyed with the girl, and the sneers her 'crew' were sporting.

"Are you sure about that? I mean, is everyone healthy?" Megan asked, her lips turned up in an evil smile. She left then, cackling with the rest of her devil posse.

"What the hell was that about?" Kyla asked Aiden, just after the girl had left.

"I have no idea," he said, picking up a french fry and almost eating it. He pulled the fired potato back, eyeing it warily. "Do you think she poisoned our food?"

"I wouldn't put it past her," Kyla grumbled, taking a sip of her milkshake. The girl had officially killed her buzz. She had the uncanny ability of always being able to do that.

"Just ignore her ass," Aiden said, placing a hand over Kyla's, sensing the shift in mood. "She's just a bitter-" his phone beeping madly interrupted him. He flipped it open, eyes widening as he read the text. "Crap, we gotta go," he said, grabbing her hand as he stood. "Chels! Put this on the tab!"


	11. I Can Do Better

"Is your brother gonna be okay?" Ashley asked her, watching as the blonde slowly walked back into the living room. She'd decided to just put Glen in her bed, opting to sleep out on the couch after realizing that Ashley had no intention of leaving.

"He'll be fine," she said, dismissing the question easily as she sat down next to Ashley on the small couch. "He's been far worse off trust me."

"And how are you holding up?" Ashley asked her, concern showing on her face.

"I'm good. I can't believe I ate eel though,"

"I don't think it counts if it doesn't stay down a full half hour,"

"Yeah," Spencer mumbled, blushing immediately. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's not a big deal Spencer. You don't have to apologize," the brunette said, smiling brightly at her.

It shouldn't have done anything for her, but it did. All of a sudden, the entire conversation she overheard in the restaurant replayed in her head.

"So…do you think Brandon really likes me?" Spencer asked, trying to appear casual, and also trying to ignore the not so subtle stiffening of Ashley's posture.

"I wouldn't know," Ashley replied dryly, picking up one of the many magazines, turning immediately to a dog-eared page. A 2 page spread, entirely devoted to her. She tried to hide her smirk. "He and I aren't best friends or anything."

"I kinda got that. What's with that oddness between you two?" the blonde enquired, playing dumb, even though she knew Ashley knew she was anything but.

"He probably wants to be me. Who knows?" she dismissed lightly, still pretending to be engrossed in the magazine. Her eyes unwittingly settled upon a picture of her and her siblings, Aiden, and Michelle. They all looked eerily alike sometimes it scared her. Michelle could've belonged to anyone of them. She had Aiden's eyes though.

"I hardly think Brandon wants to be a gnat," she commented dryly, rolling her eyes, casting a sidelong glance at her counterpart to see how that went over.

Ashley stuffed her tongue in her cheek, almost biting it off as she attempted not to smile. "I bet you think you're cute or something."

"I say the first one," Spencer said, slyly.

"Really, I was leaning towards the or something," Ashley said playfully.

"Why did you and Tasha break up?" the blonde asked suddenly, her interest in the topic all at once becoming important for her. She turns slightly on the small couch, bringing up her left leg and folding it under her, her right still firmly planted on the floor.

"You're…you're something else blondie," Ashley said, narrowing her eyes slightly. No one ever asked her about her relationships, and if they did, they knew better than to expect an answer. The rookie still had a lot to learn. "My personal life is privileged information."

Spencer disregarded this statement. "Is it because you guys couldn't deal with being teammates and girlfriends?"

"You're relentless," Ashley said, finally tossing the magazine aside, sitting Indian-style on the couch, facing the other girl.

"It's one of my best qualities," she quipped, raising an eyebrow.

"One of mines too," Ashley fired back, never missing a beat. "Tasha and I didn't work out for numerous reasons. The first and foremost being that she was, and is, my friend."

"So?"

"So, if I wanted to stay being friends with her I needed to end it," 

"Why? That doesn't make sense,"

Ashley smiled here, but nothing about the smile was genuine. "I'm not easy."

"Not what I heard," Spencer replied smoothly.

"I meant to be with," Ashley replied quickly, biting back another grin. This Carlin girl was truly something else.

"I know. Why is that exactly?" Spencer asked her softly and Ashley merely shrugged. This conversation was quickly approaching levels that far exceeded the realm of thinly veiled companionship. Even Spencer knew that. But she was compelled onward, moving forward with the line of questioning, as if following some long time mandate.

We, normal folk, call it fate.

"You must have a reason," Spencer implored, not believing the other girl for one second.

"I don't like getting attached to people," the brunette answered simply. It really didn't get any more complex than that. People, in general, had let the girl down on so many levels. The only person that she could say without fail continued to live up to her expectations of them was Aiden…and Michelle, 'cause all that little bugger had to do was stay cute.

"You have abandonment issues," Spencer said, not maliciously, not teasingly. It was just fact.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know this was the Montell Williams show," Ashley deadpanned, and Spencer could do nothing but burst out laughing. The brunette couldn't hold back her smile.

"That was – that was good," she said, finally settling down. "But I was being serious."

"I know you were," Ashley relented, decided against her better judgment to continue the conversation. "I guess that could be it. People, for the most part, just always seem to let me down," she finished, avoiding the blonde's eyes, regretting the fact that she'd left her sunglasses in the car.

"That's…that sucks," Spencer said. It wasn't the most eloquent thing in the world to say, but it was honest. And it perfectly described what she was feeling at the time. Actually, what she was feeling was an overwhelming urge to hug the girl. But that wouldn't have been appropriate would it?

Ashley snorted. Not because she thought what the other girl said was funny, but because it was ridiculously accurate. Not to mention, exactly what she was thinking. "Truer words were never spoken."

"Mmm," Spencer agreed, growing quiet, wrapped up in her own thoughts. This whirlwind of a night. That's right. "Don't think that I've forgotten about you crashing my date."

"Oh please. As if you actually had a good time with Brandon. He thinks a perfect date is fried chicken and Playstation 3," Ashley said, looking over at the other girl, waiting patiently for an answer.

"That's your idea of the perfect date," the blonde replied smugly, smiling brightly when Ashley started to laugh.

"Obviously," she said with an eye roll, still chuckling a bit. "How was your date by the way? You know pre-me?"

"It pretty much sucked until you and Glen showed up," Spencer answered truthfully.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Then you came and I knew the night was shot to hell," she barely managed, laughing at her own joke before its completion. Then –

THWAP!

"Hey!" Spencer semi-shouted, pushing away the throw pillow Ashley whacked her with. "I need my face."

"You don't," Ashley jokingly contended. "It's not one of your best assets."

"Oh my God," Spencer said, cracking the brunette with the pillow this time. "I can't believe you said that," she continued, incredulous. "Jerk," she added, just making Ashley burst out in snickers. "Fine, then. What are my best assets then?" she asked, crossing her arms and looking at the other girl expectantly.

Ashley's eyes trailed from the blonde's eyes downward, settling on her lips. They were wet and parted, an enticing invitation, but she wouldn't accept, at least, not yet. Sweeping her gaze lower, she allowed her eyes to follow the contours of the blonde's somewhat revealed thighs. She literally had to unglue her eyes from the other girl's cleavage. Made even more prominent by the blonde's tightly folded arms. But roving upwards again, her eyes settled on the blue ones staring back at her, clouded with a mixture of anticipation and something else she was unwilling to verbalize, even mentally.

Spencer blushed profusely as Ashley's eyes explored her. It wasn't subtle at all and she knew that the other girl was just doing it to get a rise out of her. And what a rise it was. Her heart was beating triple time, her brain on vacation. She became acutely aware of the minimal amount of space that was between them and that the sofa they were sitting on did double for a bed. How convenient? 'Wait,' she thought, 'What? Convenient? Where the hell did that come from?' Switching gears mentally, she finally allowed herself to realize that Ashley hadn't answered her question.

"I'm waiting," she said, suddenly, shattering whatever that tension was between them. Ashley actually had to blink a couple of times before she could function enough to respond.

"You know exactly when to shut up and you have good taste in flowers. Now your taste in guys leaves something to be desired,"

Spencer glanced over the last jab and just looked at the floral arrangement sitting on the card table that doubled for a dining table. "That was about the nicest thing I can ever remember someone doing for me," she admitted softly, the color in her cheeks still not completely gone.

"Yeah, well…" she was gonna say more, but when the blonde turned to look at her, so adoringly, the words just died; the snarky ones anyway. "…you deserve it," she finally said, looking away, feeling her own cheeks burn. 'What the hell?' she thought, playing with her fingers. "I should go," she said, abruptly standing up.

"What? Why?" Spencer asked, not at all wanting her company to bail. "Don't."

"I have training and you know, need to sleep,"

"I'm not letting you leave," she said firmly, stomping her right foot down. For all intents and purposes, she was putting her foot down.

"Wha-"

"You heard me. You've been drinking and I'm not letting you drive home,"

"Spencer," the other girl laughed at her vehemence. "I had like, three beers."

"Three beers too many in my opinion," she said, fiercely serious. "Friends don't let friends drive drunk."

"Friends don't hold their friends captive either,"

"Friends don't barge in on their friend's dates," Spencer said, raising an eyebrow.

"Friends don't spoon their friends half-naked," Ashley shot back, going for the jugular. She had her there.

"Well, I uh…um," Spencer's quick-wit failed her, her vocalizations becoming increasingly non-coherent.

"Where's your bathroom blondie?" Ashley asked, saving the girl from herself, smirking internally and externally over the victory.

Spencer pointed her in the direction of the cramped cleaning quarters, waiting until she was behind the closed door before she went off in search of nighttime attire.

**--**

"I'm sorry Megan,"

"You're sorry? Sorry? This is just perfect," she said aloud, falling back into her leather arm chair. "Now they're gonna think I did it."

Matthew and Derrick shared a confused look. "But didn't you want them to think you did it?"

"You got the wrong girl, morons," she roared at them. "I didn't want Tasha to get hurt," she added softly, rubbing her temples.

"Sorry, Meg, but at least they're out of the competition right?" Derrick asked.

"They don't have enough surfers, so yeah. Unless they can find a replacement, which, at this point in the season, whatever scrub they find is not even gonna be able to compete with us," she said, brightening just a bit. She'd send Tasha a card or something.

**--**

"What happened?" Brandon asked Madison, finally reaching the hospital. Traffic was a bitch.

Madison immediately rose to meet him, along with Aiden and Kyla, who'd arrived shortly before. "I don't know. One minute she was dancing. The next she was on the floor, thrashing in pain," she said. "I mean, honestly, she just fell."

The doctor came through the double doors, coat flapping behind him. "Are you," he looked down at his sheet, "Brandon Harper?"

"That's me. Give it to me doc,"

"Well, she was in quite a bit of pain, so we took care of that. We took a few X-rays and we're fairly certain that she's torn some ligaments in her ankle,"

"Just…fairly certain?" Aiden prodded, wanting to know the absolute extent of the girl's injury.

"I'm very sorry, but she'll need surgery to repair the damage,"

"Okay," Brandon nodded, not wanting to ask the question, but doing so anyway. "How long is she out for?"

The doctor understood immediately what he was questioning. The girl had been mumbling about it the entire time he was examining her. "I'm sorry but it looks like Miss Harper's done for the rest of the season."

**--**

Spencer gingerly stepped out of the shower, surprising herself with how long she took. Surprisingly, or not really, the overwhelming-ness of her situation finally hit her. In it's entirety. Sure, it'd been weeks but, she was actually on Team KaTo, surfing with and against some of the best in the world, one of which, she hoped, was making herself comfortable on her pitiful excuse for a couch. A feeling of dread washed over her as she suddenly came to the realization that the brunette could have made a mad dash as soon as she left her alone. Panicking, yet making sure to put her tank and shorts on while she was still in the bathroom, she hurried out into the living room, and died just a little.

Ashley was curled up on her couch, sleeping soundly. Her mouth was open, but she wasn't snoring, and her brow was wrinkled just a bit, like she was concentrating on something. She smiled and almost snorted at the t-shirt Ashley decided to wear. She'd given her three to choose from but evidently Ashley had made some kind of connection with her, 'I'm ashamed of what I did for a Klondike bar' shirt. She grabbed a blanket out of the nearby closet and moved to drape it over the other girl, tucking her in soundly.

She knelt beside the couch, really wanting to resist it but finding that she couldn't. Her fingers oh so softly brushed the hair out of the sleeping girl's face, and, before she could convince herself not to, she leaned down and pressed her lips to her forehead.

"Good night Ashley," the blonde whispered, rising from the floor swiftly but quietly, creeping away and into the bedroom with her brother.

She didn't get a good look at Ashley, but if she had, she'd have noticed that girl's features had changed. She didn't look to be concentrating on anything anymore. In fact, the girl looked rather serene.


	12. Whatever You Say

Spencer switched hands for the billionth time, gnawing on her right index fingernail now. It was a disgusting habit she knew but drastic times called for drastic measures and her first press conference definitely counted as a drastic time.

"Would you calm down?" Kyla asked her, smiling so the question went over easy.

Spencer smiled slightly at her, rolling her eyes a little. "That's not gonna happen."

"You probably won't even have to say…much," Kyla said, stopping herself because she knew there was absolutely no way Spencer was gonna get away without talking.

"I've just…I've never,"

"Just imagine them all in their underwear," Kyla joked.

"Or just me," Ashley added, sneaking up behind the duo.

"I wouldn't have to imagine. I've already seen you naked," Spencer deadpanned, turning around to face the girl.

"And?" Ashley questioned, obviously awaiting a critique of some sort.

"And what?"

"What did you think about what you saw?" Ashley asked her, quirking an eyebrow.

"I, well…uh,"

"Never mind blondie," she cut her off, walking away. "They're calling me up."

**--**

Adam Davies straightened out his suit jacket and walked forward to the podium accompanied by the face of the franchise, a.k.a. Ashley. Over the years, he'd grown accustomed to the constant flash of cameras going off, as they tended to do whenever his younger sister was involved. But as publicist for Team KaTo it was his responsibility to smooth over any shake-ups and what happened last night with Tasha was a definite one.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen of the press. As you all are probably aware of by now, one of our team members, Tasha Harper suffered an injury last night. A season ending injury," he paused here for the dramatic gasps and such. "Tasha's still staying with the team in a coaching position until she is able to compete again. However, in the interim, we have procured a new surfer to be her temporary replacement. So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to the new Team KaTo."

Aiden, Madison, Kyla, and Brandon filed out when he said that, waving at the cameras with a smile, Brandon almost dragging a reluctant Spencer along. Standing alongside Adam and Ashley they stood patiently awaiting the questions.

**--**

"Megan, you might want to turn to ESPN," Timmy said, swiveling around in his lounger.

Megan, in the kitchen, switched on the television and listened intently as she continued making her smoothie.

…_I'm from New Jersey but I think I've adjusted well to California. I'm just thankful to have been given this amazing opportunity to compete alongside some of the best surfers in the world…_

Megan slammed the glass she had down. "You have got to be kidding me."

"'Fraid not," Timmy said, walking into the kitchen. "She's legit."

Megan looked conflicted for a minute but then brightened again. "Whatever. Any replacement they found this late in the season must be a scrub. We'll still kill them at Huntington Beach."

**--**

"Spencer, over here. Tom Johnson, _Surf_ magazine. Um, how have the team members been treating you?"

"Oh they've been great. Showing me the ropes and helping me better appreciate the sport. Ashley in particular has been especially helpful and has kinda taken me under her wing,"

Brandon rolled his eyes a little before walking off. He wasn't really upset with Spencer, but his sister was injured, lost for the season, and these are the questions they ask.

"Hey," Ashley caught up to him. "What's wrong?"

He laughed brusquely. "What's wrong?" he repeated, turning around to glare at her. "You're honestly gonna stand there with that face and ask me what's wrong?" he asked her, incredulous.

"Look, I know this whole thing with Spen-"

"I don't even care about that," he interrupted, shaking his head as if blinking away an image. "That whole thing is just old news for me. I just hope you don't screw her over and mess up this team. Your past doesn't exactly bode well as far as relationships are concerned."

"Your past isn't squeaky clean either Brandon,"

"Don't even go there. You don't want to compare histories Ashley. I can fill a graveyard with the skeletons in your closet," he told her.

There was nothing really she could say to that and he knew it, which is why he turned on his heel to leave.

"Where are you going Brandon? We're giving a press conference,"

"Tell 'em I'm sick or something."

**--**

Adam stood back with a smile and watched the team members sign different articles of paraphernalia. This whole event, press conference/signing party, was turning into a huge success, even though he hated the means at which the exposure had come into play.

"It's a regular family affair isn't it?" he heard the familiar voice squawk into his ear.

"Good evening Karen, and how are you today?"

"Turn off the smarm Brother. We're blood, remember?"

"I do. I also remember you saying that you'd never attend another one of those stupid surfing things again, and yet, you're here,"

"Hilarious," she deadpanned, looking back at him dryly. "I'm only here because Michelle insisted on coming to support her Daddy and Aunt Ashley. I could care less."

Adam sighed, rolling his eyes. "Yes, we all know. School good, surfing bad."

"Shut up," she snapped, scanning their table and spotting little Michelle just now being scooped onto Ashley's lap. She also noticed the unabashed way Ashley seemed to be ogling the blonde girl sitting next to her.

"What's going on with those two?" she asked Adam, nodding in the direction of Spencer and Ashley.

"What are you talking about now?" 

"The new girl. Are she and Ashley an item?" she asked, only the way she said item couldn't have been spat out more disgustingly.

"No. Not as far as I know," he answered her, looking more intently at the pair. They were sitting a little close.

"I only ask because I thought you guys had a policy about things like that,"

"Yeah," he said absently, making a mental note to keep an eye on them. Ashley was never really good at mixing business with pleasure. Hell, that was the reason why there _was_ a Team KaTo.

He'd definitely have to watch out for that.

**--**

"Here you go," Spencer said, handing the photograph back to the young man once she'd signed it. "How am I doing?" she whispered to Ashley, leaning over a little.

"You're doing fine," Ashley whispered back, smiling at her.

"Hi Penser," Michelle said brightly, for the fourth time, holding her hand out for the shiny pen….again.

"She must really like you," Ashley said. "She hardly ever talks to people that much."

"I think she just likes my pen," the blonde replied, eyes scanning the crowd. "It's something pretty to look at."

Ashley stared intently at Spencer, a ghost of a smile on her face. "I'll say."

Spencer blushed a little then turned to look out across the sea of faces, catching a glimpse of one she knew was familiar.

"Hey Ash?" she asked the other girl, accepting another photograph as it came down the line. "Isn't that-"

"Ugh," Ashley groaned, handing Michelle over to Spencer. "Can you hold Michelle for a minute? I'll be right back."

"Sure," Spencer replied, happily taking the toddler. "You know, you look really pretty," she told the youngster, before looking after the other girl. "Just like your aunt," she added in a whisper.

**--**

"What are you doing here?" Ashley asked the girl, angrily approaching her.

"Calm down, Davies. I'm just here for an autograph and an up close look at the weakling you've scrounged up as a replacement," Megan said, smirk sitting on her face. "And by the looks of things, you're sleeping with her too."

"I won't even dignify that with a response," Ashley said. "I don't know it for certain yet, but I know you had something to do with Tasha's injury. And as soon as I find out, I swear…not only will you be kicked out of the league. I'll make sure that Tasha knows it was you who sidelined her."

"You don't know anything, and if you even think about telling her, I'll make sure that some of your secrets come to light too," Megan fired back, then regained some of her cool. "I'm sure Miss All America would love to hear about that."

"You go near her and you die. And I don't mean that figuratively,"

"It's a big, big, world Ashley. No one's untouchable these days," Megan said slyly, a shit-eating grin spreading across her face. She snatched a photo out of a waiting fan's hands, looking it over quickly. "Especially not someone as cute as her," she added, winking at Ashley, and it took everything the girl had not to knock her out right then and there. "I'll see you around Davies."

**--**

Aiden pulled to a fast brake in front of Spencer's place, the blonde giggling even as her head came into contact with the back of the passenger seat.

"Whoa, bumper cars," she mumbled out, before dissolving into snickers.

"Shit," Aiden cursed, putting the jeep in park. "She's wasted man. Her brother's gonna kill us."

"We just have to get her inside, quietly," Ashley said, unbuckling her seatbelt, and clamoring out of her side. "Kyla, help."

She and Kyla both hooked an arm around their necks and carried/dragged a very drunken Spencer all the way up to her apartment. "Man, you guys don't look alike," the blonde said, glancing at one brunette, then the other. "I mean, you're both pretty but you don't look alike."

Kyla turned to hide her smile when she saw her sister blush and then try not to smile at the blonde's drunken but honest words.

Finally reaching her floor, Ashley reached over the door ledge for the spare key and let them in, walking very slowly into the house.

"Glen?" she called out, getting no answer. Kyla went to explore, and she shushed Spencer all the way over to the couch.

"There's a note," Kyla called out, from somewhere within the darkened apartment. "Says he had to stay and extra half shift."

"Great," Ashley muttered dejectedly. "He won't be home for another two and a half hours then. I can't just leave her here."

"Then stay," Kyla offered, trying not to sound too enthusiastic about it. "Aiden and I can come scoop you up in the morning."

"You sure?" Ashley asked her, truly ready to jump on the opportunity, but not wanting Kyla to know that.

"Yeah, it's not a problem. She needs you anyway," Kyla answered, her double-meaning now apparent. "See you in the morning."

"Yeah," Ashley said, turning back to the blonde who'd apparently toppled over passed out on the sofa.

She went over to her, getting on her knees in front of the couch, effectively crouching down in front of the sleeping girl. Brushing a few blonde locks away from her face, she allowed herself to take in Spencer's profile, not at all knowing that almost exactly 24 hours ago Spencer had done the exact same thing to her.

"You…you don't look that bad yourself blondie," she said quietly, remembering Spencer's words from when they were climbing the apartment stairs.

Unlike last night however, Spencer's eyes popped open at the hushed declaration. Ashley's hand froze mid-brush, hovering somewhere near Spencer's right temple.

"You always seem to find me," the blonde whispered slowly, watching intently as Ashley's brow knitted in confusion. "You're always in the right place to find me."

"Huh?" Ashley asked her, completely perplexed.

"Thank you," Spencer whispered again, leaning up the short distance to Ashley's face and pressing the gentlest of kisses to her lips, feathery light yet filled with an obscene amount of affection.

And just like that it was over.

Spencer's body dropped back to the couch like it was made of lead and she was fast asleep, her light snore a testament to that.

Ashley shook the cobwebs clear and then literally wiped the smile off her face before getting to her feet.

Where could she go? She could sleep in Spencer's bedroom, but she didn't want to do that especially after knowing firsthand that Glen slept in there the night before.

She could try the floor, but, the carpet had definitely seen better days. Who knew what kind of disgusting things were crawling around in it.

She could try waking Spencer and having her go into the bedroom, giving Ashley the couch, but a) chances were the girl was knocked out and no amount of poking or prodding would be able to wake her up, and 2) she looked far too angelic to be disturbed anyway.

Ultimately, she just decided to share the sofa with Spencer, sure it was small but, if she sat down at the end, she and Spencer would have a semi-tight yet bearingly comfortable fit.

"Good night Spencer," she mumbled out, closing her eyes and plopping her head down onto the arm of the sofa, falling asleep immediately. Spencer shifted in her sleep, moving upward and then comfortably settling her head into Ashley's lap.


	13. I See You

The late morning sun arose the next morning to find the two young women very wrapped up in each other, unwittingly so. A blanket had been haphazardly strewn over the pair at some point during the evening when a wiped out Glen made an appearance.

He tip-toed into the stuffy apartment, not being able to hold back a chuckle at the position they were in, knowing that both girls were probably going to be very hung over. He'd somehow managed to watch the press conference in the break room at work and he, maybe more than anyone, could read his sister. And by the looks of it, she was definitely into this Ashley.

Worshipped her even.

It was cute.

Giving the duo one last look, he tossed the throw blanket over them both, and then retired to the bedroom.

**--**

Spencer stirred first this time and toppled over the side of the couch, lightly hitting the carpeted floor stomach first, then abruptly pushed herself up on her hands.

"What in the- oh," she groaned, bringing her hand up to her head as she turned over onto her back. Wincing she crumbled back down to the ground, squinting her eyes closed.

"Oh my God," she muttered wracking her brain for a memory from last night, one that would explain why she felt so sucky this morning. She remembered signing autographs with Ashley…and shot glasses.

_Oh_, the shot glasses.

Ashley groaned suddenly and rolled over, not realizing she had slept on that smaller than small couch and before she could stop herself, she flipped over and onto Spencer.

"Hey!" Spencer yelled out, affronted, until she got a better look. Then her eyes practically popped out of her skull.

"Ashley," she breathed out, staring up at the brunette, feeling a thumping in her chest. Her heart she presumed but it could've been Ashley's. She felt embarrassed but for the life of her she couldn't remove her eyes away from the other girl.

"I fell," Ashley mumbled, stating the obvious, immediately (but not intentionally) breaking the tension between them.

Spencer giggled first, Ashley promptly joining in.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Glen asked playfully, laughing a little when Ashley jumped off of the girl. She looked embarrassed or guilty or possibly a mixture of both.

"Hey Glen," Spencer said, sitting up and ignoring the throbbing in her head.

"Morning girls," he grinned, a knowing smirk on his face. "I was gonna go out for Mickey D's breakfast. Want me to bring you something back?" he asked, flinging his car keys from one hand to the other.

"Pancakes," Spencer asked, eyes wide and hopeful.

"Okay," Glen said, shaking his head as he remembered the many times over the years she's made that same request and got the same result.

"Me too?" the brunette asked him, giving him her best smile.

"Of course," he said, opening the door. "Now, do you two think you can keep your hands to yourselves while I'm gone?"

Spencer blushed profusely which just made him crack up even more, closing the door behind him.

Spencer ran her hand up and down her arm, shooting a shy glance in Ashley's direction. "Sorry. My brother's a moron."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Ashley reassured her, smiling warmly at the girl.

"Yeah," the blonde replied, looking everywhere except for at Ashley.

This morning was turning out to be very awkward.

"I uh…I should probably take a shower," she murmured, pushing herself up of the floor. She walked slowly to the small bathroom, internally debating… something.

She paused at the small entryway, where the living room turns into the hallway, looking over her right shoulder at Ashley. "You can come keep me company if you want," she teased and Ashley couldn't help laughing at the call-back to when Spencer had spent the night at her place.

"Don't tempt me Carlin," the brunette said jokingly with an undertone of seriousness; A rather obvious undertone.

"Your loss," Spencer said, shrugging as she made her way into the bathroom, trying to play it cool.

The fact that she pressed her back up against the door as soon as it was closed a direct indicator that she was not.

See, the thing about Spencer Carlin is, although she could never really handle her liquor, she always remembers what happens…always.

Her kiss with Ashley last night was no exception.

And as she tried to regulate her breathing, and her heartbeat, she wondered if she'd ever be brave enough to try that again.

Ashley, for her part, sat dumbfounded on the living room floor, staring at the empty space that just seconds before was occupied by Spencer.

Also known as the BIGGEST TEASE IN THE UNIVERSE.

But that only begs the question.

She couldn't be serious. "Could she?" the girl asked herself, remembering how incredibly serious she was when she first made Spencer that offer.

Then again, she was gay. Spencer's not.

'Or is she?' Ashley'd only ever heard the girl say that she was not gay, not that she was straight. Maybe there was some variation.

Maybe.

Only one way to find out.

**--**

Brandon pounded away furiously at the punching bag, trying to hammer away his frustrations.

Right jab, right cross, left jab.

Sister's done for the year.

Surgery's gonna be a fortune.

Need to place high in next competition.

Right jab. Left hook.

Something's strange about the whole situation anyway.

The explanation for the accident didn't seem plausible enough.

There's more to it.

And let's not forget…

Right cross, left jab, left jab, right hook.

Spencer.

Left cross, right jab, right jab.

Adorable.

Punch.

Intelligent.

Punch.

Beautiful.

Punch.

Spencer.

Kick.

And Ashley.

Left.

Right.

Left.

Right.

Left. Right. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left. Right.

"Whoa!" Madison said, interrupting his little workout turned extreme. "Take it easy there Brando."

He huffed like a maniac, dropping his arms at his side, sweat dripping from him in buckets. "What are you doing here?"

"Same as you," she said, a tinge of amusement making its way into her voice. "Just…you know, less psychotic."

"I've just got a lot of stuff on my mind," he said, biting the tape of his right gloved hand.

"I see," she replied, taking his gloved hand and removing the tape herself. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I'd really rather not," he said, catching her eye for a moment and then looking away, smiling in spite of himself.

"Well…" she started slowly, moving onto the other gloved hand, biting down slightly on her bottom lip. "…if you feel like you want to talk I'm available," she told him, unlacing the glove and pulling it off of his hand, letting her fingers linger in his palm.

"Do we have to talk?" he asked her quietly, gently grasping one of her hands in his, tracing his thumb along the back of her wrist.

"No…we don't have to talk."

**--**

"You what?!"

"Aiden, calm down,"

"No. No, no, no, no, no. And ew,"

"I know. I know you don't like it-"

"Don't like it?! Don't _like_ it?! It's disgusting,"

"Oh, come on Aiden. It's not all that bad. I mean, it's practically the same drink,"

"It is _so_ not. A caramel Macchiato is not the same without whipped cream," the boy contended, pouting adorably yet annoyingly.

It was one of his most endearing and frustrating traits.

"You hang out with us girls entirely too much," Kyla deadpanned, amused over his hissyfit. "You're starting to PMS." 

He laughed aloud at that one, coffee mishap forgotten. "Man, oh man. Okay, you're forgiven. But just this once. I don't want screwing up my coffee order to become a habit." He brought the drink up to his lips as they stopped at a red light for a moment, grimacing at the taste. "This tastes like it's been dipped in shit."

"How the hell do you know what that tastes like?"

"I don't…personally. But I'd imagine it'd taste just like what's in this cup," he shot back, finally just deciding to forgo the coffee. He'd drink a red-bull or something. "Did Adam call you?"

"Yeah, saying something about a team meeting? Wonder what _that's_ about?" she said sarcastically.

"You have an idea?" Aiden asked, completely oblivious as to one the senior-most Davies could be calling a meeting for.

"Uh, yeah. Come on Aide. He's gonna tell Ash to cool it and we'll have the same old conversation about not getting involved with fellow team members, only that rule only ever applies to Ashley,"

Aiden frowned, knowing that was probably exactly what the meeting would be about. "You called Ashley right?" he asked her, several beats later.

"Yeah, but she's not answering the phone,"

**--**

Ashley stood just outside the bathroom door, listening intently to the muffled sound of water cascading from a shower head, wondering if she should…or not.

If worse came to worse, she could always say that she was just playing a joke on Spencer.

If she lost her nerve, she could just flush the toilet and laugh menacingly as Spencer shrieked, before jumping out of the shower…skin glistening and flushed from the heat of the water…She'd glare at Ashley but before she could react properly Ashley would have already captured her in her arms, kissing her thoroughly, pressing against her-

"Okay, stopping that train of thought," Ashley whispered aloud, shaking the cobwebs. That was just setting herself up for a huge disappointment.

In all honesty, if she barged in there now, Spencer'd probably think she was a pervert.

That was the worst-case scenario.

The best case scenario had her and Spencer doing other-worldly things to one another.

Meh, it was worth a try.

Trying the doorknob, she discovered that it was, in fact, unlocked, but all her internal musings caused her to overlook the fact that the shower was no longer running and as she opened the door, her eyes fell upon a very shocked and very naked blonde.

**--**

It took Ashley about ten seconds to regain enough composure to look away from the girl, because, let's face it, Spencer's hot.

"_Ashley_," the girl groaned, grabbing a towel and covering up immediately, face flushing red.

"I am _so_ sorry Spencer. I didn't mean to…I was only trying to," Ashley's words failed her miserably as she tried to focus on anything that wasn't Spencer.

The toothpaste.

The mirror.

Those tanned, lean legs-

'No, the toilet. Think about the toilet Ashley,' she told herself. 'Yep, that'll do it.'

Spencer looked at her expectantly and it dawned on the girl that she hadn't given her a valid excuse for barging in on her private bathroom time.

"You were trying to what?" Spencer asked her, folding her arms across her chest. It was only an attempt to hide the fact that her hands were shaking.

"I was trying…" Ashley trailed off, searching for an answer, finding it and her confidence in one fell swoop. "I was trying to take you up on your offer," she said, grinning slyly, smirking.

"Which was?" Spencer asked softly, her annoyed façade crumbling quickly.

"To keep you company," Ashley said. No hesitation on her part.

She'd thrown down the gauntlet.

And Spencer was about to pick it up and smack her with it. "Well, it's about damn time," she said, her mouth turned up into a half-smile.

A sexy smile.

Then she dropped the towel.

**--**

"What are you doing here?" Tasha asked the girl, throwing down the hospital remote in frustration.

Nothing was on, but that may have been just because she was annoyed with having to be _in_ the hospital.

She _had_ just flipped through about 500 channels.

"I heard my girl was hurt and I decided I wanted to see how she was doing," Megan said, setting the large flower arrangement down by the girl's bedside. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm confined to a hospital bed until I have my surgery and then probably for half a month after that. How do you think I'm holding up?" Tasha yelled, not really angry at her, but it was a crapped up situation.

Megan internally cringed, but kept a tight smile on her face, to keep up appearances. "Yeah, I'm sorry," she said, sounding really sincere, and who's to say? She may have been.

But Tasha just waved her off. "It's okay. It's not like it's your fault," she said, trying to appease the girl. "Sorry for snapping at you."

Megan gulped worriedly, feeling incredible guilt. But she had to do what she had to do. That's the only thing that made her feel better about what was going on.

"I…uh, I understand," Megan said, trying to keep her voice steady. "I hear they've got a ringer for you."

"Uh…Spencer's no ringer," Tasha said, having to smile at that. Calling Spencer a ringer was like calling our current President smart. It just wasn't true.

"So…um, where's she from?"

"Is that what you're here for? To pump me for information about the new girl?" Tasha asked, catching on pretty quickly, sort of.

"No…not at all-"

"Because you could have easily sent one of your little cronies to do that. I haven't seen Timmy in a while,"

"That's not why I'm here," 

"Then why are you?"

"I told you. I wanted to check up on _you_," Megan said, her tone slightly exasperated. The way it tended to be when she wasn't lying.

Which, in case you were wondering, wasn't often.

"Well, I'm fine," Tasha grumped, turning the television back on.

That was the signal.

This visit was over.

**--**

Glen walked back into the apartment, arms (and mouth) loaded with food. He kicked the front door closed behind him, yelling out a muffled, "I'm back," as he made his way over to the dining table.

Then he saw her.

Ashley stood in the hallway, her back pressed against the bathroom door.

"What are you doing?" he asked her, finally swallowing whatever it was he'd been chewing on.

"I'm uh- waiting for Spencer," she said, 'And coming out of an awesome daydream. Thanks _GLEN_.'

"She taking forever?" he asked her, setting the bags down and walking over. He opened the bathroom door, casting a sneaky glance in Ashley's direction. "Now, be bery bery careful," he said, in his best Elmer Fudd impression, tip-toeing over to the toilet. He pushed the handle down quickly before jetting out of there, laughing companionably with the brunette as he closed the door behind him.

"GLEN!"

**--**

"That was…" she just trailed off there, letting him fill in the rest.

"Goddamn, Madison. I know it's been a while, but…where'd you learn to do that?" Brandon asked her, his chest still heaving.

They had enough decency to carry their activities to somewhere slightly more private than the floor mats in the gym.

A broom closet seemed like a worthy location.

"It's probably better if you don't know, Papi," she drawled, patting him on the cheek nicely.

He just groaned. "I swear to God, if you say Ashley-"

"God, no! No," Madison interrupted, shaking her head vehemently, even as she laughed a little. "I do _not_ swing that way. She's really been bugging you lately hasn't she?"

Brandon shook his head, pulling his shorts back on. "Spencer's a nice girl and Ashley has the tendency to chew people up and spit them out without giving a damn the next day. I don't want the girl to go through that."

"And that's all?" Madison asked skeptically, adjusting her sports bra, before opening the door.

"…and, okay, I happen to like her too," he said, following her down the hall.

"A lot," Madison supplied this for him.

"Maybe," he agreed, shrugging a little, completely betraying his actual feelings.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't give up so easily. I haven't," Madison said cryptically, bumping him with her hip.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked her, stopping in his tracks, and she merely smiled, winking at him before walking backwards slowly and out of sight.

**--**

"Jerk," Spencer said, slapping him on the head slightly, before taking a seat at the card/dining table. She'd taken forever to dress, and Ashley was already showered and halfway done eating by the time she came out. "Wait 'til the next time you take a shower."

"Hey, that wasn't even me," he contended, rubbing the spot where she'd hit him. "That was all Ashley," he added, smirking at the brunette.

"I swear it wasn't me Spence," she said, holding up her hands innocently. "Would I lie to you?"

"Yes," the blonde shot back, laughing nonetheless. "But for some reason I believe you," she mumbled, grabbing a pancake with her hand and eating it dry, the way she liked 'em.

Ashley looked down shyly, hiding an uncharacteristic blush, much to Glen's amusement.

He loved that he could read women so well.

"Is that us?" Spencer asked suddenly, gaping at the back of the sports page Glen was reading.

Sure enough, there was a picture of Team KaTo, or rather, the new Team KaTo. The headline underneath read, "New Member: A Gift or a Curse". The article then went on to discuss some of Ashley's more salacious affairs, including a recent, although never proven, escapade involving Megan Abubo of team ROXY. Seems like wherever Ashley went, regardless of her many accolades, trouble followed.

Good thing Glen actually never took the time out to actually _read_ the articles.

"Huh? Would you look at that?" Glen said, beside himself. "I'm framing it," he almost squealed, jumping up immediately in search of materials.

"Glen," Spencer groaned, embarrassed and excited all at once. Who the hell cared what the article said. She was in the paper.

"And so it starts," Ashley said, smiling at her.

"I guess so," Spencer agreed, noticing for perhaps the first time the flecks of gold in Ashley's brown eyes. "Ashley?" she questioned the other girl softly.

"Hmmm?"

"Your eyes…" she trailed off there, thinking or rather wondering how it seemed like the longer she stared into her eyes, the closer she seemed to be.

"Yeah?" Ashley asked her, keeping her voice quiet, afraid of breaking the moment. Her eyes darted down to Spencer's lips as she darted her tongue out to moisten hers.

"They're-"

BUZZ BUZZZ BUZZ

Spencer blinked, nearly falling out of her chair as the door buzzer sounded. That must've been Kyla and Aiden.

"I'll…I'll get that," she said, pointing dumbly at the door as she rose to answer it.

Ashley'd have to stick with daydreams for a little while longer.


	14. Reveal

Ashley looked on as Spencer stared attentively at Tasha, listening to whatever it was the other girl was talking about. More than likely, it had to do with surfing, but Ashley didn't really care.

It was remarkable really, how Spencer could look so…so intriguing doing absolutely nothing at all. At the current moment she just sat motionless, watching Tasha's intricate hand movements and facial expressions, laughing at the appropriate moments. It was truly remarkable, but that's all the brunette would allow herself to think.

Dwelling on it too long might force her to further analyze the situation. And, then she'd see that the remarkable thing was not that Spencer could look amazing doing nothing, but that Ashley could easily spend forever _watching_ her doing nothing. This, though, never made it out of the girl's subconscious. For now, Spencer was something nice to look at.

And Ashley was not going to deprive herself of that luxury.

"What are we looking at?" Aiden said, very suddenly, and, because of how intently she was staring, seemingly very loudly into her ear.

If anyone was startled it was him, jumping back as Ashley nearly leapt into the air.

"Jesus Aiden, you scared me," she breathed out, pressing a hand against her thumping chest, looking around subtly to make sure no one saw that.

"I would say so," he commented dryly, picking up his board (which she made him drop just now) and rolling his eyes. "That's bound to happen when you're boring holes into something with your eyes," he continued, squinting off in the direction she was looking, not really seeing anything. Just Tasha…and Spencer.

'Oh,' he thought mischievously, looking over at her. 'Spencer.'

"Or maybe I should say someone," he stated slyly, wiggling his eyebrows.

"What are you droning on about now? And dude, seriously, what is that about anyway? Normal people use inflection when they speak. You're not a robot," she said, ever so subtly glancing back over at Spencer.

"I'm _talking_ about Spencer, and how you, Ashley, can't seem to keep your eyes off of her,"

Ashley scoffed unconvincingly. "You've been smoking crack again?" she asked, rather loudly, drawing the attention of a few onlookers.

"She's just kidding," he said, steering her away slightly. "Stop saying that okay? Last time they asked me about my addiction in an interview."

She snickered adorably and twirled her surfboard in the sand, "Classic."

"Whatever, we're getting off-topic,"

"I'm sorry. You were saying?"

"I was saying how adorkable it is that you're into Spencer,"

"I am not," the girl squealed but only because he had said 'into'. It would have been different if he'd had just said she thought the girl was hot because that went without saying, but 'into'? No, Ashley Davies didn't get into anybody…well, technically she did but…oh, you know what I mean.

"Ha," he said, smiling at her. "Hu. Ah," he emphasized this time, smirking at her reaction. It was one of cool indifference, but he knew better. And he knew how to get a rise out of her.

"I'm gonna go tell her," he said, starting toward the blonde.

That got her attention.

"You'd better not," she said, snapping her head in his direction and glaring daggers at him.

"I'm going," Aiden said, breaking into a full sprint just a second before she did, approaching the blonde in no time. "Hey Spencer, Ashley l- AH!," he barely got out, before being tackled hard into the sand. In any other circumstance and with any other girl, he'd be slightly turned on. But, even though Ashley was in a two-piece (and a skimpy one at that), he could only laugh when he picked his face up out of the sand, spitting out granules.

"What the hell is going on with you two?" Tasha asked, peering down at the pair with Spencer at her side, looking equally concerned, and amused.

"I tripped," Aiden admitted, pushing the brunette off of him. He gave the explanation because, let's face it, when Ashley peered up at Spencer, she'd lost whatever cognitive ability she normally possessed.

"Well, can you maybe next time trip somewhere else? Preferably, somewhere where I'm not poised precariously on crutches," Tasha said flippantly. So, basically, her normal voice.

"Don't have a baby," Aiden grumbled, standing up and then pulling the shorter girl to her feet.

"Not gonna happen…Ever," Tasha maintained, crutching away with him following close behind, making sure she didn't fall because Aiden was nice like that. Or maybe he was plotting to steal them, you just never knew.

"You good?" Spencer asked her, once they were out of earshot.

"Yep," Ashley answered, brushing sand off her backside, noticing just barely that Spencer was still staring at her.

"You have some sand…" Spencer trailed off, pointing at the girl's shoulder, reaching over to brush it off. "Here."

"Thanks," Ashley said softly, feeling Spencer's slender fingers move over her heated skin.

"No problem," Spencer said with a smile, looking the other girl in the face, then frowning slightly. "There's some more."

"Well, get it Blondie. You need to start working off your debt," Ashley said, a smirk on her face.

"No way. I'm not touching you," the girl said, bringing her hand up to brush the sand out of Ashley's hair, as best she could with it being wet and everything.

There goes that fate thing working again.

See, because Ashley ended up staying at Spencer's last night, she didn't get out into the water as early as she normally would have. So, instead of being completely dried out, she was still a little damp. Meaning, Spencer's fingers had to work a little harder on that renegade sand. Those fingers had to linger a little longer.

Isn't fate a beautiful thing?

"Newsflash: You're touching me," Ashley informed her, staring at the girl's face, which was, coincidentally, directly in front of her own.

"Your hair doesn't count," Spencer told her nicely.

"Like hell it doesn-"

Spencer grabbed her face quickly, squishing her cheeks together with one hand, stopping the words. It didn't hurt but it was effective. "You really like to hear yourself talk don't you?"

The brunette simply nodded, seeing as words weren't an option right now.

"Well, is there another way to shut you up? You know, a less violent one?" Spencer asked her, and the girl merely nodded again, trying hard not to laugh, but quickly forgetting about that as Spencer moved even closer to her, those blue eyes sparkling wickedly.

"And what, pray tell, is that?" she asked again, quieter this time.

It was one of those moments where everything moved in accelerated slow motion. And if that sounds like it's not possible, just think about those times in your life where the moment seemed slow enough that you had time to store each and every detail, yet fast enough for it to be over much too quickly.

That's what we call a Spashley moment.

"Kissing her might work," Kyla said, grinning goofily as she approached the pair.

That was sort of cute but damn it Kyla!

Spencer stumbled back, sort of clumsily, grounding her eyes as her cheeks flushed.

"I'm just saying," Kyla continued, smiling adorably at her sister, who uncharacteristically started to blush too. It was all very strange, this new thing going on with Ashley. But, entertaining for sure.

"Alright everyone!" Clay, their 'coach', bellowed, cupping his hands over his mouth for amplification. "In the water. Remember, up on three."

**--**

"So, what do you think?" Adam asked, laying out the scenario for Jason, the team's publicist.

"I think it's great. Hell, lesbians are hot this year. And a lesbian couple that happens to be surfing teammates has to be so hot it's probably illegal in hell," Jason dismissed it easily, flipping through a magazine as he propped his feet up on Adam's desk.

"But it's Ashley," Adam contended. "She sucks in relationships. And this team is finally at a point where there's no drama."

Jason just looked at him.

"Well, little to no drama," he corrected, leaning back even further in his leather office chair.

"It's your call dude. You make all the major decisions. I'm just here to make suggestions. All I'm saying is nothing in the world is sexier than the thought of two girls fu-"

"Sister," Adam interrupted, giving the guy a glare. "She's my client but she's still my sister."

"I got you. I got you," Jason said, playfully holding his hands up. "I'm just saying. Hot."

"No wonder my sisters despise you," Adam said, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, that just means I'm good."

**--**

"One…two…three!" Kyla yelled out, clapping her hands, hoping to keep the girls on track.

Ashley effortlessly pushed herself up on her board, already in her stance.

Madison wobbled slightly, but quickly corrected her positioning, just in time to make a turn.

Spencer's legs turned to jello and she collapsed into the water, surfacing shortly after, pushing her hair out of her face and looking miserable.

"I don't know if you know this or not," Madison said, wading over to her. "But the objective of this sport is to stay _on_ the board."

"Shove it, Madison," Ashley said sharply, finally making her way over. "Is everything okay?" she asked the girl, a little more than concerned now. The competition was tomorrow and Spencer was…well to put it delicately, she was stinking up the place.

That wasn't really delicate.

"I'm fine," Spencer assured her, climbing up on her board, getting ready to wade out again.

Madison rolled her eyes, but followed the girl out too, Ashley right behind her.

**--**

Aiden and Brandon sat on their boards, balancing out in the water, watching the girls try to get on the same page.

Aiden caught Madison looking at Brandon. He also caught the little smile they exchanged.

"Aw, please don't tell me you're messing with her again," he groaned, smacking the guy lightly on the chest.

Brandon snapped his head back over to look at him. "What the hell man? You're a guy. You're not supposed to be this intuitive."

"Dude, that's gross. Madison's diseased,"

"She is not. _God_, we're such assholes to her,"

"Ooh, someone's sensitive," Aiden teased, somehow managing to stay on his board when Brandon shoved him hard. "She knows it's all in jest. She gets on my nerves, but I'd never let anything happen to the girl."

"Well, that's just sweet," he drawled in a mock country accent, then winced immediately as Spencer hit the water again…hard.

**--**

"What do you think the problem is?" Tasha whispered to Kyla, squinting out at the girls.

"Distracted," Kyla muttered, giving Spencer a thumbs up. "Much better that time! Almost got it!"

"Ashley?" Tasha questioned, once Spencer turned back away.

"Oh yeah," Kyla replied, starting the clap off again.

They were quiet for a moment then Tasha leaned over. "That's not actually a good thing."

**--**

SPLASH!

"Damn it!" Spencer yelled, smacking the water with her hand as she popped back up after falling off her board, again.

Ashley truly didn't know what to do. It really wasn't that hard, and she'd never seen Spencer have trouble with her push-off before.

"Okay ladies, take a half!" Clay shouted wearily, waving at the guys to get started.

Ashley, glad for the mercy, rushed out of the water. She was hungry really but that's not how it looked to Spencer, who simply hung her head dejectedly.

Then, with as much determination as she could muster, the girl trudged further out into the ocean, ignoring Clay as he called out for her to "Take a break to eat! Then get back out there!"

She ignored Brandon and Aiden's placating voices too.

All that mattered now was her and the wave…and Ashley.

Always Ashley.

She laid out flat on her board, paddling out even further. The break was perfect today and angling her board she turned around, prepping herself for it.

When it reached her she steadied her hands on her board, moving her legs to position her feet under her squatting form, knees still on the board, trying to steady herself. That was the first position.

The next second she pushed her legs upward, hobbling slightly but keeping her balance, widening her stance. That was the second position.

Shuffling her feet just barely, and keeping her arms out for balance, she steadied herself, breathing a sigh of relief when all that happened was she quivered slightly, before dropping in on the wave.

She wasn't aware of them applauding her. She wasn't even aware of them all (save Tasha) swimming over to congratulate her (because even though they had they're drama, Team KaTo was always a team first, individuals second). That is, until Aiden damn near tackled her underwater.

"Alright, Blondie!" Ashley yelled, pulling the girl back out of the water. "Way to go!"

And while there were other words of encouragement, that's pretty much all she heard.

**--**

**The next day…**

The woman started talking over the montage, the television displaying many live shots of the beach and the athletes. "Good afternoon ladies and gentleman and welcome to the 14th Annual Huntington Beach Team Surfing competition. I'm Elizabeth Hershey."

"And I'm Kenneth Brenner,"

"And right now you're looking at Team KaTo getting warmed up. Today has the makings of being a very entertaining competition, more so than usual. And that's chiefly attributed to a few shake-ups in terms of the teams,"

"That's right Liz. Team KaTo lost their 3rd highest ranked player, Tasha Harper, due to a freak injury, but luckily for them they had just signed rookie Spencer Carlin from New Jersey," Kenneth says, the camera cutting to the pensive looking blonde, staring out into the waves behind mirrored sunglasses. "On a team anchored by the two wily veterans Ashley Davies and Brandon Harper, they're poised to close out the year in command of the polls, leaving them in great position for next year."

"On the other hand, Team ROXY made a few late season moves of their own, dropping Tracey Carter, en lieu of acquiring the gold medal-winning Aussie, Dina (something or another). They, trailing just a few points behind Team KaTo, are trying to make a run at the team, and today would seem as perfect an opportunity as ever,"

"So, sit back, relax, and get ready to watch some of the world's best surfers go at it here on SONN."

Arthur, back at home in New Jersey, turned the volume up a notch on the television set, knowing that his wife wouldn't be able to hear it otherwise. Because, even though she refused to watch, Paula Carlin always seemed to make her way downstairs into the kitchen whenever Spencer's competitions were televised.

**--**

"Alright team, bring it in," Clay said, pulling them all into the very unorthodox huddle. "Remember what we talked about. Stay loose, don't push, and most importantly…have fun," he added with a cheesy smile. "KaTo on three. One…two…"

"KaTo!" they yelled out, going onto the pitch. This was one of the biggest events of the year, which meant cameras, fans, and publicity galore. And, with the added drama, there was even more press than usual.

Kyla was up first.

Ashley crashed down next to Spencer, sitting on a towel.

"Re-tie this for me?" Madison asked her, plopping down in front of her, holding out the strings of her bikini. The entire team was wearing them…matching bikinis and board shorts.

Ah, life is good.

"Dennison, I'll break your fingers," the brunette warned him, knowing it was him who did it, looking over to where he was seated with Brandon. "Knock it off," she said, somewhat impassively. No matter how many times or how well she did, he still became a nervous wreck whenever Kyla went out to surf. And it always worked itself out of his system through stupid practical jokes.

"How are you doing?" Brandon asked Spencer, sitting on the girl's other side. Strictly for support. He was done with the blonde _that _way. "Nervous?"

"Oddly enough. I'm eerily calm," she said, lying her ass off. But she had to play it cool right? Ashley was right there.

"You _lie_ Blondie,"

"Fine, I am. But admitting how nervous I am isn't gonna make it any better," she muttered out, watching Kyla make the most out of a rather short wave. The girl had skills.

"Just forget about the judges while you're out there and pretend it's just us at practice or something," Madison offered, trying to be helpful.

"Uh, Madison?" Brandon asked her, trying not to laugh, even as Aiden and Ashley snickered.

"On second thought, don't do that. At. All," she said, only allowing herself to laugh when Spencer finally did.

"Oh hardy har har," the blonde said, rolling her eyes grandly, even though she laughed along with them in earnest.

"Ky's done," Brandon announced, straightening out his board shorts. "I'm giving her a 9.2," he said, critiquing her performance as honestly as possible, earning a hearty smack from Ashley. "Ow, okay, 9-9. 9.9."

"That's better," Ashley joked, settling back down, noticing the voracity with which Spencer was gripping her water bottle. "Hey," she said softly, drawing the blonde's eyes to her. "You're gonna do fine."

"Yeah," Spencer said absently, hearing her but not really. Then Ashley grabbed her hand, interlacing their fingers together. "You'll do fine," she repeated, only this time Spencer heard her.

**--**

It's the closest thing to a religious experience she'd said on numerous occasions, but there's something about dropping in on a giant wave that's completely tranquil and completely terrifying for Spencer Carlin. Most people would think surfers are crazy, because one wrong turn and you could be dead. In fact, every surfer at any moment of those ten seconds when you first drop in a wave is staring death and danger in the eye…and practically flipping him (or her) off.

Spencer rode it hard, cutting in and out of the tight tunnel, crouching low to keep her center of gravity in place. 'That had to look awesome,' she thought, when she emerged from the other end. She had no time to search the audience for reactions though. She had to catch another wave.

**--**

"One…two…three," Ashley counted silently to herself, as Spencer pushed herself up off her board once more, dropping into another wave. The girl was doing great, she had to say. Much better than yesterday. 'Maybe she performed best under pressure,' she mused, watching intently as Spencer made yet another turn and the audience applauded.

"You might not have to go out there," Kyla said jokingly, bumping shoulders companionably with her older sister.

"I wish," she said, not really joking. She hated going head to head with Megan, but of course, it had been set up that way. It was what 'the people' wanted to see.

The horn beeped three times, signaling the end of Spencer's run and she watched the girl jog up the beach towards their pitch. The smile on her face blossoming wider the whole while.

Until the blonde collapsed quite suddenly, her body dropping to the ground like a rag doll full of lead.

It didn't take long for her to race over to her, falling to her knees beside her in the sand, only to stare down at the girl in absolute confusion. Spencer was…laughing?

"I'm having a Jerry McGuire moment," she whispered, and Ashley, though still perplexed, waved everyone, including the EMTs, away.

"People are gonna think you're crazy, blondie,"

"What're my scores?"

"Haven't come in yet,"

"I surfed my ass off,"

"No. I think your ass is still in tact,"

"You've been looking at my ass?"

"Occasionally your big butt does tend to block my vision, yes,"

"If it's anywhere near as big as your head that could pose quite a problem,"

"9.9," Ashley repeated the first score. Even though the scores were being announced over speaker, the crowd noise always made it difficult to hear. "9.9," she said again, at least two more times, before saying, "9.8."

"Psh," Spencer scoffed, unbelieving. "There's no way I got a 9.8."

"Rookie treatment. They're not gonna give you a perfect score which means I have to come to your rescue, again,"

Spencer rolled her eyes, but held up her hands for the brunette to help her up, which she did of course. She waved at the crowd that was a little anxious over her collapse and applauded her when she finally 'came to'.

"What happened?" Aiden asked as the girls approached the pitch.

"Nothing," Ashley said off-handedly.

"Yeah, I'm good," Spencer added, sitting back down and shooting Ashley a playful glance.

"So's Megan," Madison commented dryly, watching the girl tear it up, on the wave. She was really getting after it.

"Not worried," Ashley stated with a yawn, just as the cameras were focused on her. The tight set of her shoulders told a different story though.

Spencer stealthily reached out a hand and traced a line down the back of the brunette's hand, which was firmly planted on her knee, tapping out an anxiously non-rhythmic pattern.

Ashley looked over at her and they locked eyes behind the shades, although neither were entirely sure of how. Those sunglasses they wore, never let you see beyond the mirrored lenses, but somehow, those bluer than blue eyes met the hazelnut brown ones, not letting go for more than a few moments.

The camera caught that too.

Inexplicably, they smiled at one another, Ashley's nose crinkling in the process which just made Spencer smile harder.

"You're up Ash," Aiden nudged her, and Madison, Kyla, and Brandon, all patted her companionably on the shoulder, when she rose to go, but she was looking at Spencer throughout the entire exchange. The blonde would be her anchor this time.

**--**

"And your 2007, Huntington Beach Team Surfing Competition winners are…it was a close one folks, but the winners are Team KaTo, Los Angeles, California!"

Together they all mounted the platform, raising their arms in victory, accepting the trophies they were handed.

And the humongous check.

Can't forget about the check.

Ashley and Brandon held the largest trophy up, amidst cheers…and some jeers. Team ROXY was _somewhat_ popular.

"Ashley, Brandon, over here!" a reporter shouted. "Any comments on today's victory?" Looking at each other once, they stepped aside and let Madison field the question, catching the girl entirely off-guard.

"Uh, it was freakin' awesome and a complete team effort. Team ROXY definitely came to compete but so did we," she finally managed to get out.

"Can you tell us what happened with Spencer?" another reporter asked, and Madison turned to the girl wondering what she should answer.

"I fainted," the blonde answered, with a shrug, standing impossibly close to Ashley.

"She fainted," Madison repeated. "Next question."

"Do you think this victory is the one to keep Team ROXY behind you for the rest of the year?"

"Like I said, it was close. The standings are probably still neck and neck,"

"We won't underestimate Team ROXY, but team ROXY shouldn't sleep on us either," Brandon added, a threatening undertone to his statement.

"Alright, that's all folks," Jason said, laughing uncomfortably, as Brandon stared down a couple of surfers from ROXY, stopping the questions before things got out of hand. "Thanks for coming out today. I'll field any more questions you may have."

Spencer jumped off the platform into her older brother's embrace. "Way to go, Spence," he whispered, hugging her tightly.

"Thanks for coming,"

"Miss your first big competition? Please. There's no way I wasn't gonna come,"

"Thank you, Glen," she stated again, eyes brimming with tears, and he knew she meant for coming out here with her.

"In a heartbeat. Anything you want. I'd get it for you in a heartbeat,"

**--**

"Daddy," Michelle squealed, running full steam ahead at the boy. Aiden stooped low and scooped her up, the little girl's arms clasping around his neck and then reaching an arm out for Ashley too.

Karen hung back, watching the interaction with a small frown on her face. Try as she might, she and Aiden never looked as comfortable with the little girl as Ashley and Aiden did. Oddly enough, even Spencer fit into the picture better than she did.

"Penser," Michelle said, calling the blonde to her attention. "I saw you. You surfy good."

"I surfy good?" Spencer asked, stepping up closer to her, them, …Ashley.

"Mhm, yep," the little girl assured her, beaming. "You surfy berry good," she maintained, giggling adorably afterwards.

Yes indeed, Karen couldn't have felt more out of place than she did at that moment, but, that was to be expected.

Though, we can't tell you why, just yet.

**--**

**Later…**

Ashley caught up with Spencer as the girl was sitting down at a table, watching her brother stupidly make a fool out of himself on the dance floor.

"Mind if I join you?" she asked the blonde, and she merely shook her head, patting the booth cushion next to her.

"Your brother is obnoxiously fantastic," she shouted to the side of Spencer's head, trying to be heard over the thumping music.

Spencer nodded, giggling a little. That made absolutely no sense. "He is a living oxymoron."

Ashley looked at him once more before turning to look at the girl, scanning her profile.

"What are you looking at?" Spencer asked, not looking at her, but smiling nonetheless.

"I was wondering…if…if…" Ashley trailed off, feeling decidedly uncertain.

"If?" Spencer prompted, finally turning to look at her.

"If you were drunk or not," the brunette finished stupidly, almost smacking herself in the head for backing out. That was _so _not what she wanted to ask her.

"Nope," Spencer answered shortly, smiling a little more now. It was a combination of endearing and corny, her smile was.

She couldn't help but notice the slight slump of Ashley's shoulders. "Oh," the brunette said, rather expertly masking her disappointment.

"Yeah," Spencer said, feeling a rush of confidence. "I bet you were wondering, if I was drunk, whether or not I'd kiss you again."

Well, _that_ pretty much stunned the brunette into silence, or cardiac arrest. She wasn't quite sure.

"The truth of the matter is: I don't have to be drunk to do that." And before she could fully process the statement or blink for that matter, Spencer leaned in and pressed her lips against hers.

--

**A/N: **

**Alright, just because I'm this bored at my new work, I want to play a little game. I want you guys to drop me a review and tell me one thing that you think is most important to know about you. Just the one. I just find it really interesting when I check out the statistics on this stories and there are like readers from all over the world checking it out and I'd also like to know more about you guys and who knows, it may inspire me to get back into this fanfiction thing all the way. I've already started some new stories but, nonetheless, it would be interesting to hear about you for a change rather than from me. So, what do you think? 20 responses minimum? Is that a good number? Nah, I'm going for 30? 30 minimum and the next chapters will be posted for each of the stories.**


	15. Turn It Up

**A/N: Okay, you guys win. I surrender. Let's see an interesting thing about me is that I've never seen a single South of Nowhere episode...oh and that I'm a pathological liar. J/K. Here you go!!**

--

Spencer turned her head slightly in that strange jerky way when you wake up in unfamiliar surroundings. Her lips came into contact with soft warm skin, and she moaned contentedly, the memories washing over her.

She shifted slightly, sliding her leg in between the other girl's, using her arms to prop herself up.

"Ashley," she whispered softly, leaning down to brush her lips against the sleeping girl's. The naked sleeping girl's. "Ash, wake up," she whispered against her lips before leaning down to trail the tip of her nose on her cheek.

Ashley smiled lazily, not opening her eyes. "That had better not have been a dream, blondie," she murmured, making the girl on top of her chuckle.

She finally cracked open her eyes and looked up at Spencer, not really believing half of what happened last night actually occurred, but it must have. Otherwise, Spencer wouldn't be on top of her, naked, kissing her.

She moaned out again as the kiss turned unquestionably heated, even as the phone rang incessantly at bedside.

"You should probably answer that," Spencer mumbled, her actions contradicting her words because she never got off the girl.

Ashley shook her head slightly, pulling her closer. "No one even knows we're here."

"I know," the blonde concurred, stopping there as she became preoccupied with kissing Ashley again. "But they're probably looking for us, so it's better to answer the phone than it is to have them come looking for us."

"I'd rather you come instead," Ashley whispered naughtily, biting down gently on Spencer's lower lip as she trailed a hand up the girl's inner thigh.

"Oh God," Spencer moaned out, easily getting caught up again. But before she could feel Ashley precisely where she needed her, the brunette ceased all "lower-level" activity, reaching for the phone instead. She winked when Spencer's eyes shot open in incredulity.

"This is Ashley Davies…" she spoke into the receiver, trying not to moan in appreciation as the blonde reattached herself to the girl's neck. "Mmmhmm…" she mumbled out, fighting to make her throat work, no longer 100 percent dedicated to the phone conversation. Spencer trailed her lips along the girl's jaw line, leaving teasing wet kisses in her wake. "Who?" she asked hazily, meeting Spencer's lips again, kissing her hungrily.

Then the words sunk in.

"Glen?" she thought aloud, barely keeping up with Spencer. "Oh shit, your brother," she hissed, throwing the girl off of her.

"Ow!" the blonde yelled, falling kind of hard on the hotel room floor. "Ashley, what'd you do that for?"

"I'm sorry," she replied quickly, scrambling down to the floor to inspect the girl for bruises or anything, quickly getting distracted because, duh, Spencer was naked.

Shaking the cobwebs, she forced herself away from the girl and stood, looking around hurriedly. 'A robe?' she thought lunging for the article of nightwear and slipping it on. "Perfect. Now, what to do with you?" she asked herself aloud, pulling Spencer to her feet and looking for somewhere to stash her.

"What is your malfunction?" Spencer finally asked her, after being rushed around the room a third time.

"Your brother's on his way up here," Ashley finally said, snickering as she thought about tossing the girl in the closet. You know. Gay? Closet? Wait, was Spencer gay? Man, she really needed to get that question answered.

"So?"

"_So_?" Ashley repeated back, disbelieving. "If your brother finds you here like that he's gonna know something happened," she said, shoving the girl into the closet.

"Again I say, so?" Spencer shot back, stepping back out.

"Spen_cer_, you can not be this thick," the brunette deadpanned, slightly exasperated. "I don't want to die. Now hide," she added, pushing her back in.

"You're overreacting. Glen loves you and he loves me. Love plus love equals love,"

"No, your brother will hate me for banging his little sister,"

Spencer stood in the threshold, a silly grin on her face. "You banged me? That's hot," she stated.

"Okay, Paris Hilton. Tone down the catch phrases and hide please," the brunette muttered with an eye roll.

"I'm gonna hop in the shower. Just tell him the truth," the blonde said clearly, grabbing the other girl's face so that she really listened, before slowly walking away towards the bathroom.

"_Blondie_," Ashley whined, looking after her.

"What?" Spencer asked, confused.

"Why would you mention a shower with you in it, now? I so do not need to be imagining that when I'm talking to your brother,"

"Get rid of him quick and you can witness it firsthand," the blonde said slyly, slinking away and closing the door behind her.

**--**

Aiden stumbled into the overly active kitchen. Overly active particularly because it was the morning following a major competition, which they won.

Then everything made sense as he realized they were at Karen's house. "Mornin' Daddy," Michelle greeted him, picking up a syrupy French toast stick and taking a huge, messy bite.

He brightened instantly. "Good morning, Pumpkin. Did Daddy's girl sleep well?" Aiden asked her, sitting down in the chair next to her high chair.

"Mmmhmm," she said, nodding enthusiastically, kicking out her Elmo slipper-covered feet.

"She stayed in her big girl's bed all night," Karen stated, sitting a plate of eggs, bacon, fruit salad, and toast in front of him.

"That's because she is my big girl," he said, beaming at the giggling little girl. "Thanks for letting Kyla and I crash last night," he added, looking across the table at Karen, who'd just sat down.

"I didn't have much choice," she said flippantly, never one to accept thanks that girl. Even in times she was a life saver…or career saver. "Where is the youngest Davies anyway?"

"Still sleepin'. Yesterday was kind of a big deal, you know?"

"Yes, yes. Team KaTo defeats ROXY, woohoo. I read the paper,"

"We're in the paper? _Sweet_," he said, grabbing the stack of discarded newspaper sitting on the table and rifling through it. "Ha, it's got Spencer's fainting episode in here. That girl's crazay."

"Ashley doesn't seem to mind," she stated pointedly.

"What are you talking about?"

"Turn the page,"

He did and his eyes literally bugged out of his skull. "Oh my…when did _this_ happen?"

"Ashwee! Penser!" Michelle squealed, pointing at the rather large photo picture Aiden was gawking at; the one that currently displayed the two aforementioned girls rather cozy and practically topping one another in a booth.

**--**

"Okay," Glen breathed out, more than relieved. He was standing out in the hallway of the hotel. "So, she stayed here with you? Man, I was so worried."

"She's fine," Ashley assured him, shifting uncomfortably to her other foot. "I should've made her call you or something."

"Nah, it's cool. Now that I know that she was with you I know she was in good hands," he said.

Boy, he had no idea how true _that_ was.

Ashley tried not to turn to red. "Well, um, I'll send her down to the lobby when she comes out…of the shower," she amended, realizing how odd that sounded afterwards and how suspicious she must have sounded.

"Actually, you keep her. I'm late for work as it is. I just needed to know where she was at," he said, readying to leave. "Tell her to ring me on my lunch, yeah?"

"Will do," she called out to him as he walked back down to the elevator, nearly collapsing with relief.

"Is he gone?" Spencer asked, peeking her head out of the bathroom when she heard the door close. She'd showered quickly, but stayed in with the water running for appearances.

"Yeah," Ashley breathed out, pushing herself off the door and making her way over to Spencer, towel-clad Spencer. Oddly enough, the look was familiar. "How was your shower?" she asked her, trailing her finger along the girl's exposed collarbone, goosebumps rising on contact.

"Lonely," Spencer replied, pouting slightly and doing the head-tilt. Dangerous combination. A person could literally combust from the cuteness of it all.

"You missed me?" Ashley asked her cutely, moving ever closer, trailing both hands along the inside of Spencer's arms, grasping her wrists loosely.

"Well, I needed someone in there with me,"

"To keep you company?"

Spencer nodded.

"I can do that," Ashley assured her, walking them forwards, back into the bathroom.

"Well, it's about damn time," Spencer said, her mouth turned up into a half-smile.

A sexy smile.

Then she dropped the towel, leaning forward and capturing Ashley's lips with her own.

'It is so much better in real life,' Ashley thought, smiling into the kiss.

"Why are you smiling?" Spencer asked her, pulling open the tie to the robe and smoothing it off the brunette's shoulders.

"Because you look much better in HD," she murmured, steering them closer to the shower. Even confused, Spencer's breathing picked up, as well as her heart rate.

"Huh?"

"Never mind," Ashley mumbled, pressing her against the shower door and then pressing herself into Spencer. She opened her eyes incredibly slowly and fixed her gaze on the blonde.

Spencer, feeling her pull back slightly, opened her own and watched Ashley watching her. "Why'd you stop?"

"Your heart…" she trailed off, pressing her palm against the girl's chest. "It's-"

"Fine," Spencer cut her off, not wanting to explain why it was beating like that. She didn't want to explain to her that the way she was touching her now reminded her of the first time she'd ever been touched intimately…which was last night.

She didn't think Ashley could deal with that.

"Are you sure?" Ashley asked her, still slightly concerned.

"I'm sure," the blonde assured her, grabbing the girl's hand and guiding it lower, much lower. "And I'm sure I don't want to be talking right now," she whispered against her lips, kissing her deeply again.

Ashley got the memo.

**--**

Glen got to work exhausted, partying last night and then worrying about his little sister had really taken a toll on him.

Not to mention waking up with a complete stranger in your bed. 'What was that girl's name? …Dana? Nah, that wasn't right.'

"Carlin, you read the paper this morning?" Hank, a guy he worked with, asked him.

"Not yet. Why?"

"Your uh, sister's in it," Hank said, elbowing another buddy in the arm as the guy snickered.

"Really? Let me see it," he said excitedly. Spencer's good fortunes always lifted his spirits. "What page?"

"Near the back. There's a _huge_ spread,"

Glen flipped through the pages in anxious anticipation, coming to the first article. "TEAM KATO TOPS ROXY…" then he turned to the other page, "…THEN TOP EACH OTHER". The guys around him all laughed as his eyes went wide, but it had nothing to do with the article per se, nor could he contribute his reaction to the article's content. He was more concerned with the distribution and the fact that, since they'd moved, his dad had subscribed to the _LA Times_. The same _LA Times_ he was holding in his hands.

That was _not_ good.

**--**

Brandon, Tasha, and Madison all sat around the kitchen table.

"You two are insane. Like, literally," Tasha said, not at all believing what she just heard.

"It's the perfect team of play,"

"And you don't think the association's gonna come after you for that. Come on Brandon, don't be stupid,"

"Well, what the hell do you want me to do Tasha? Just sit here? Knowing that they sabotaged you, us…the team?" Brandon practically roared. He needed to work out all this frustration somehow.

"No," the girl placated him, trying to calm him down. "No one's asking you to back down."

"Just bend over?"

"Brandon, don't be so crass," she said, turning her attention to Madison. "What about you? Why are you going along with this? You don't even like me like that."

"True, but initially the attack was intended for me," Madison said. "You guys would be just as pissed if it happened to me, right?"

"Uh, yeah," Tasha said, not lying but caught off-guard. Madison hardly ever was intentionally nice. "Still, you guys need to come up with something more practical, that won't get you put in jail. Infiltrating ROXY and sabotaging them from the inside out is just idiotically moronic. That's how stupid it is."

"Then just let me go after Megan," he begged, sort of.

"No," Tasha said, serious about that. She knew how much he couldn't stand her, but, God help her, she still loved the girl. "I don't want anything bad to happen to her."

"You do know that she did this to you," he said, nodding to her busted up ankle.

"We don't know that," she contended and he merely sighed loudly, rolling his eyes.

"You know what?" Madison said, grabbing his hand as she stood. "We'll come up with something…on our own."

"Brandon,"

"Don't worry sis. If we get caught, we don't know you," he said, allowing himself to be led out of the room.

**--**

"Look it. Look it," Aiden said, flapping the paper around as he jumped onto the bed Kyla was sleeping in.

"Ow!" the girl yelled, sitting up abruptly, rubbing her side. "That was a rib Aiden."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, lifting up the girl's shirt. "Let me kiss it better."

"Well if you insi-"

"Maybe later," the boy said, getting his bearings back. "Look at this."

Kyla grabbed the newspaper he was waving around in front of his face, her eyes focusing on the picture. "So?"

"What?!"

"Aiden, they were probably both hammered or something. And, from this angle, it looks like they're hugging,"

"Kyla they're making out,"

"But they're practically under the table. You can't really see anything," she dismissed easily, handing the paper back to him. "You should know better than to jump to conclusions. Must I remind you about the monkey incident?"

Aiden blanched as he recalled the rather unfortunate photos of his hand coming dangerously close to an orangutan's bottom. It took a month to get that all sorted and to get the zoo to lift the restraining order.

"But…I mean it looks like…" he stuttered out, turning the paper and looking at it from another angle, squinting. Nope, still looked like they were making out. "Well, answer me this: where'd they disappear to last night?"

"I don't know," Kyla said, swinging her legs out of the bed. "But I sincerely doubt they were hooking up."

**--**

"Ashley, I'm hungry!" Spencer called out to the other girl, who was still in the shower. She was a fan of long ones it seemed.

"And you're telling me this why, Blondie?"

"Make me something to eat,"

"Do I _look_ like Rachel Ray?"

"Kind of. You know, if you squint _really_ hard,"

"Whatever. If you're really hungry my wallet's on the nightstand. Use the gold one and order us something," Ashley yelled out, rinsing the soap out of her hair, waiting for a reply. "Spencer?! Spencer, did you hear me?!"

The shower door was pulled open then quite unexpectedly. "I heard you," Spencer smiled, especially when Ashley tried to blink the water out of her eyes. "Thank you," she added, yanking Ashley toward her by grabbing the other girl's slippery wrist so that she could kiss her.

"Yeah, well," Ashley stuttered out, looking shy but then regaining some of her cool. "Just make sure you get me some tater tots, blondie."

"You don't want anything else? Something hotter?" the blonde teased, untying her robe.

Ashley smiled and resumed washing her hair. "You mean hot like jalapeno poppers?"

Spencer shook her head, shrugging the robe off her shoulders a little. "Hotter."

"Um…buffalo wings?" Ashley asked, still playing dumb.

"Try again," Spencer said, this time dropping the robe so that it fell casually until it rested in the crooks of her elbows.

"Oh, I know, fire roasted chicken enchiladas with salsa roja and some tortillas with salsa picada on the side,"

"How about a sexual favor or two with a slice of Spencer on the side?" Spencer quipped, quirking an eyebrow.

"Oh," Ashley dismissed casually. "I already had that but if you want it," she added, trying and failing to hide her grin. Failing because she couldn't help it when Spencer started laughing, pulling her robe back on.

"I'll be back," she told her, opening the bathroom door.

"You'd better."

Spencer shook her head, still chuckling slightly as she walked over to the nightstand. She found the card Ashley told her to look for and dialed up room service. Spotting a picture of the girl with the team, she flipped through the mini photo album. She saw the one of the family, she'd seen so many times before. It was almost exactly after their parents died, and you could see how dependent they were on one another. The next one was of the girl and Aiden, much younger, like pre-teens and obviously way into each other. 'Thank God she grew out of that,' she mused, turning to the next one.

It was Aiden and Ashley, again, but they were in some kind of bright white room, and Ashley was cradling something in her arms, not looking at the camera. The picture right behind that one was the same scene closer up, only now Aiden and Ashley were aware of the camera at least. Ashley held the little baby, smiling adorably at the camera, her right index finger wrapped firmly in a tiny fist. Aiden's left arm was draped on the bed behind her, his right hand perched on the tiny infant's head. It hit her with shocking finality then and her newly founded suspicions were given even more validity when she flipped the tiny snapshot over.

_Me and Aiden and our baby, Michelle Ashley Dennison._


	16. Don't Fall Out Boy

Spencer kind of fell back onto the bed, the hand not holding the picture coming up to cover her mouth in shock. Vaguely she heard the shower turn off and she just barely acknowledged Ashley talking to her, asking her something decidedly unimportant.

At least now it was.

Ashley paused inexplicably, stilling the hand that was towel-drying her hair, glancing at her wallet still in Spencer's hands.

Spencer fixed the girl with and indescribable look. She was in shock… awe even. But there was a profound underlying emotion that was simply indecipherable. Maybe it was just confusion.

"What's wrong?" she asked her, already knowing the answer but feigning ignorance anyway; Trying to draw out a few more moments of untainted bliss; Trying to eek out a few more seconds of Spencer/Ashley perfection.

"I uh…I found this," Spencer said, waving the wallet around a little bit.

"Oh," the other girl said, feeling her heart drop. Sighing a little wearily, she slowly walked over to her. "It doesn't mean what you think it means."

"To be perfectly honest with you, I don't know what to think,"

"Okay," Ashley mumbled out, grounding her eyes.

"So…" Spencer started cautiously, not really knowing how to ask. "She's…um…Michelle's-"

"Michelle's my daughter, yes," she answered, not being able to contain her smile. "Well, mines and Aiden's."

"Wow," the blonde breathed out, shocked but not really. She'd kind of allowed herself to think that before…in passing.

Only in passing.

"Wow, that's unbelievable or wow, I'm pissed you didn't tell me," Ashley managed to ask, even huffing a little laugh at the end. Even though, at the present moment, she couldn't have been more serious…or nervous.

Spencer was a bit taken back by the question. Ashley didn't pussyfoot around it seemed. "Oh no. No, no, no. Just wow as in…wow," she assured her. "I'm just, …wow," the blonde repeated, unable to get her thoughts together.

"You said that already," Ashley smiled a little, her trepidation still great.

"Oh my God, is that what happened when you had the five-month hiatus?" she asked suddenly, the fact just dawning on her.

"Yeah, we couldn't hide the baby bump anymore. So, we made the decision to send me into hiding,"

Spencer still couldn't believe it. There were so many unanswered questions. The whos, whats, whys, the hows. And they all kept ping-ponging around Spencer's head.

_Who made the decision to keep the pregnancy a secret?_

_How did they manage to keep the girl's true heredity a secret for so long?_

_Why does Michelle call her Aunt Ashley?_

"Wait, does Michelle know?"

"Yeah, she does," Ashley replied with a laugh, knowing exactly why the other girl asked that particular question. "She calls me Mommy most times when we're alone. She started calling me Aunt Ashley when Adam's son, Aaron, used to come around because that's what he called me and she _adored_ him. We all thought it was cute so…yeah, we just let her keep doing it."

Spencer smiled unwittingly, shaking her head slightly as she looked back down at the picture. "And here I was thinking I knew everything about you," she teased then tensed as Ashley inched closer.

"You know, you have to pretty much keep it a secret. It's not that I'm ashamed or anything. I love my daughter unquestionably, but we thought it was best career wise and for Michelle. I don't want her exposed to all of that and, let's face it, I do get a lot of attention, most of it negative. I didn't want all of that put on her," Ashley tried to explain.

"I get it," Spencer said, nodding in understanding. And she did get it. Michelle could live like a normal child if people believed Karen to be her mother. But, having a lesbian surfing legend for a Mom might prove to be difficult to live with, eventually at least. "I can't believe _you're_ a mom."

"Believe it," Ashley said with a smile, bumping her shoulder against the blonde's companionably. "This doesn't change things with us does it?" she asked, very quietly, as she moved even closer to the girl, taking her closet hand in between both of her own.

Spencer mulled it over for a moment, shrugging indifferently in the next. "I don't see why it would," she said, unfazed. So what if Ashley was a mom or a girl, she still loved her the same.

Oh. My. God.

And there it was: the inevitable freak out.

"Oh my God," the blonde gasped out, pulling away from the other girl quickly, panicked.

"What?" Ashley asked her, instantaneously concerned. "What's wrong?"

"Oh God," Spencer squeaked out, feeling herself drowning in the girl's eyes again. She somehow forced herself to look away and for some clothes.

"What're you doing?"

"Where is my shirt?" she asked, crawling around in search of it.

"Spencer, come on. Talk to me," Ashley implored, anxious as hell and talking too fast like she tended to do when situations seemed out of her control. "Just calm down and talk to me."

"I just need my shirt,"

"Why?"

"So that I can leave,"

Five words. Five words and now Ashley was panicking.

"Okay, no. Spencer, no," she said, clamoring out of the bed. "You are _not_ leaving."

"Yes I am,"

"No you're not. I'm not gonna let you," she informed her, blocking the doorway.

Which was ridiculous really because Spencer still hadn't found any clothes and had only one shoe on.

She wasn't going anywhere.

"Move,"

"No,"

"I'm serious Ashley," she said, fixing the other girl with a steely gaze. It was cute though. Ashley thought so too.

"So am I Blondie," she replied with a smirk.

"Why won't you move?" Spencer asked, sounding desperate.

"Why are you freaking out on me? You just said that it wasn't a big deal,"

"It's not,"

"Then why do you wanna leave?"

"Because,"

"Because?"

"Yeah, because," Spencer answered back, defensively, shifting uncomfortably as the girl stared at her. "Why won't you let me leave?"

And just like that, the table's turned.

"I…" the brunette trailed off, not at all prepared for that question, she had an answer but… oh, screw it, "I like you, a lot. And I'd really, really like it if you wouldn't pull away from me. Last night, the things we did, the things you did to me…it was amazing Spencer. You can't tell me you didn't feel it."

"I did," Spencer admitted shyly, wondering how all of this would play out. She hadn't actually intended on speaking on it. "I felt it and God, Ashley, I don't…I never planned on any of this, and I don't understand, but being with you last night, it just felt like…like, it was something I should have known but at the same time it was brand new. I mean," she stopped here, shaking her head miserably, "I know that sounds all kinds of crazy-"

"It doesn't," Ashley assured her, not sure of when she and Spencer got so close. She had moved away from the door and Spencer had closed the distance between them as well. "I get exactly what you're saying. And, I won't even pretend to begin to know what it means, but I'm not gonna just turn my back on you or this…us. So, that's why I won't let you leave."

Spencer smiled brightly a little, and then looked down to the floor to hide it.

Ashley beamed back at her, placing a finger underneath her chin to lift the blonde's face. She wanted, needed to see her eyes. "Is that okay with you Blondie?" she asked her quietly, trailing a thumb back and forth across her cheek.

Spencer didn't answer verbally, but when she grabbed the brunette's hand and led her back to the bed Ashley figured it out.

**--**

"Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to turn up," Aiden said, propping his hands behind his head as Ashley walked in through the door. "Did you have a nice night out with Spencer?"

Ashley played the ignorant card very well. "Que?"

"Look and learn Davies," he continued, handing her the paper.

"Oh God," she mumbled out, paling immediately but quickly covered it up. "We must've been drunk."

Aiden snorted.

"Well, what do you want me to say? That's the only explanation I have," she said, handing him back the paper and walking into the kitchen.

"So, where'd Spencer crash because it wasn't at home if Glen's massive amount of calls is any indication,"

"She crashed at the hotel with me," the brunette said casually, twisting the lid off of a bottle of orange juice. "But nothing happened."

Aiden squinted at her, not believing that for one second but before he could pry Kyla walked into the room. "Oh, hey Ash,"

"Ky," she answered with a smile, stepping aside to allow the youngest Davies entry into the fridge.

"We have, let's see, a meeting at four," she started, rummaging around until she found a sandwich, already made. Madison's, but she'd give the girl some Reeses to make up for it. "But we have the next few days off and I was thinking about going car shopping. You wanna come with?" she asked her

"Sure,"

"Cool,"

"Spencer was thinking of getting one two," she added, taking another swig of juice. Somehow, they'd (she and Spencer) managed to have a few meaningful conversations during the night. "Is it okay if she comes?"

"Hell yeah. The more the merrier. Well, I mean, let's just keep it to the girls. Aiden couldn't talk car talk to save his life,"

"Is everyone's favorite past time to emasculate me?" he asked, forgetting about Ashley and virtually everything else as men tend to do when their masculinity is threatened.

"Aww, sweetie," Kyla said, moving over to rub his arm affectionately. "Don't get upset. I love you just like you are."

"Yep, a big ol' pile of pre-pubescent male afraid of his own shadow,"

"I am not," Aiden practically shrieked. "The power went off that time and I swear someone was in this house following me."

"Yeah," Ashley agreed, setting the juice bottle down. "Your shadow," she added, snickering.

Now officially perturbed, he turned on his heel not even remembering the reason he was in the kitchen in the first place.

"Oh man, Ashley, why'd you do that? Now I'm gonna have to do stuff to him later," Kyla grumbled, pulling out a chair and sitting down, patting the chair next to her for Ashley to join her.

"Too much information," Ashley mumbled, snatching a half of the sandwich from Kyla without much protest.

"So…where were you last night?" Kyla asked, taking a small bite out of the sandwich, watching Ashley do the same and try to hide a smile.

"Just hung out with Spencer and then she crashed at the hotel. Nothing interesting,"

"Mmm hmm," Kyla mumbled out, bringing her hand up to trace the hickey on her sister's neck, smiling when the girl jerked away slightly. "I'll say. So…you and Spencer?"

"I don't know what you're talki-"

"You're eating your after sex food Ashley. You only have orange juice and ham sandwiches after sex,"

Ashley's words got caught at the back of her throat.

"You missed your calling. You should have been a private investigator,"

"Just so you know, everyone else is merely skeptical, even after the photos,"

"Okay." A beat. "Ky?"

"Hmm?"

"I really like her,"

"I know."

Ashley took a bigger bite and waited until she swallowed before speaking again.

"Ky?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I love her."

Kyla choked.

**--**

Spencer had an altercation of sorts waiting on her when she got home too, only hers was far less combative.

"We need to talk," Glen said, not harshly, not anything really. He just stated a fact. "Sit," he added, pointing at the couch.

She was unaware of what was going on. As far as she knew, Glen was still 100 percent in belief of the story that she'd simply crashed with Ashley at the hotel. That's what she remembered Ashley telling him.

"I know I should have called," she said, haltingly.

"It's fine," he dismissed, moving one of the folding chairs they used as dining chairs and sitting down on it in front of her. "I saw the paper."

"What paper?" she asked him, confused.

Glen retrieved the newspaper from the nearby coffee table, handing it over, Her eyes grew wide as she looked over the spread, but then, then she got kind of sick.

"Oh God,"

"I'm not mad or upset or anything. I love you Spencie. But, well, here's the deal: Dad saw this,"

"Oh God,"

"Don't…just, well Dad called and he asked some questions and I told him that I needed to talk to you first. Now…whatever you want me to tell them I will."

Say wha- "Come again?"

"I mean, I know Mom will just die if it's true but, hey us Carlin kids gotta stick together right? So, if you want me to lie, I will,"

Oh man. Spencer was at a crossroads. But she and Ashley had decided they wouldn't tell anyone anything. Especially since neither one of them had anything to tell. They'd only had sex. Great sex. But sex nonetheless. They didn't need to broadcast that, right?

_Right._

"Glen?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm in love with Ashley."

**--**

"I have some time off next week," she said, flipping through her day planner.

"Which days?" he asked her, clicking the drop box on the computer screen.

"Thursday through the weekend," she replied, somewhat anxiously.

"There's an afternoon flight that would get us there just after midnight," Arthur told her, looking over at her for an answer. "Paula?"

"Book it," she said, hurriedly, penning it in. She was more than anxious over the prospect of going to see her daughter after all the months of freeze-out, which hadn't resulted in any desirable reaction. Instead of Spencer hopping on the first plane back to New Jersey, she merely stopped asking about Paula when she called home. What if she'd damaged her and Spencer's relationship beyond repair?

"It'll be fine, honey," Arthur said softly, clicking the flight before moving over to her, running a loving hand down her arm.

Arthur Carlin was no fool, but telling his uber-Catholic wife that their estranged daughter had been publicly photographed making out with another girl…a surfer girl?

Psh.

He wasn't that stupid.

**--**

Brandon pushed her away for the third time that afternoon. "I thought we were supposed to be figuring out what to do about ROXY."

Madison rolled her eyes and leaned into him again. "That's boring," she drawled out, trying to kiss him again.

"But…but they screwed over Tasha,"

"I know," she replied wearily, finally getting it that they were done fooling around…for now.

"So, what should we do?"

"Kill her?"

"Madison, I'm serious,"

"Let's just wait until we get some more data from our inside informant," Madison said, sliding her arm around his neck, then sliding her thin frame over his. "We want to really get her back and there are far worse things than dying."

"I like the way you think," he said, getting wrapped up in kissing her again.

**--**

"Did you find out anything?" Megan spoke into the phone discreetly. "Oh, is she now?" she asked the person on the phone, smiling wickedly. "This'll work out perfectly." The voice on the other end asked her something. "You let me worry about that. Just get back to getting me some more information. I'm not paying you to ask me questions."

Megan hung up the phone and picked up the picture she'd clipped from the newspaper, the one of Spencer and Ashley.

"So you love her huh?" she asked the inanimate object, smiling cruelly. "We'll just have to see about that," she added standing up to leave. She balled up the paper and threw it into her fireplace. It crackled menacingly before turning to ash.


	17. I'll Be Watching You

"Hello, beautiful people," Jason said, handing each of them the weekly team itinerary. "Special hello to you ladies," he added, eyeing Ashley and Spencer, ceasing immediately when Adam cleared his throat.

"Why do you guys always call these things so early?" Brandon grumped, slumping down to the table.

"It's 6 o'clock at night dude," Aiden said, a little more than amused as he poured Kyla a glass of water.

"Your point?" he mumbled tiredly and Madison rubbed his leg stealthily.

"So, I trust we've all gotten our little victory celebrations all out of our systems," Adam started.

"No,"

"Not really,"

"Nein,"

"Not at all,"

"Nah,"

"Nope,"

They all turned slightly to look at the new kid on the block.

"Hell no," she said, and they all cracked up just a little bit.

"Alright, just like I thought," Adam quipped. "Well-rested and ready for anything. That's my team."

Tasha sighed, weary. "Quit being so corny and let's get this damn thing started."

"Alright," Jason spoke up. "First hot topic: this Ashley and Spencer thing."

"There is no _thing_," Ashley answered quickly. "Next topic."

"Now, hold on, McQueen. Not so fast," Jason said, holding up his hands, faltering slightly with the look Adam was giving him.

"What?"

"A _Cars_ reference? Dude, seriously?"

"Shut up. It works," Jason fired back, rolling his eyes. "I was just saying-"

"There's nothing to say. We got drunk and made out a little bit. End of story." This, surprisingly, coming from the blonde. Well, surprising to everyone except Ashley.

"So, we're not talking about it then?" Brandon asked Ashley, wondering what he should say when he was inevitably asked about the 'photo'.

"You can, but there's not a lot to the story so…"

"I gotcha," he said with a smile. "See, hear, and speak no evil."

"Exactly,"

"Okay, well now that that's resolved," Adam started, clasping his hands together. "As you all know, the HRC is holding an event in West Hollywood two weeks from now and we've been invited as Tasha's been selected to receive the Humanitarian of the Year award along with other not as important people. It's all black tie and stuff which means real clothes, even though I know how much you guys are against it. And Aiden, do try and wear actual pants this year. Board shorts don't go with everything."

"Fuck you dude," the affronted boy grumbled out as everyone kind of snickered at him.

"No thanks. Anyway, I expect everyone to be in attendance. I don't care if it's fight night. I don't care if Ricky Martin is in town one night for a concert. I don't care if Gabrielle Christian called you up herself for a one-night stand,"

That last one caused some jaws to drop.

"I don't get it," Spencer said, confused.

"Never mind. My point is: You. Have. To. Go. We understood?"

The grumbles in response were leaning more towards compliance so he pressed on. It wasn't like they didn't like going to events and stuff. They just hated having to wear actual clothes.

"One more, and then we're out of here. The NSL (totally making this up) is having some new mixer/press/getting to know you thing and there will be a lot, and I mean a LOT of pros there. Don't ask me, you have to go, but, please try not to get into it with ROXY,"

Brandon actually snorted but covered it up pretty nicely. The snort made him choke on his chewing gum.

"We never do anything. They bring all that crap to us," Tasha defended weakly.

"Of course," Adam said, giving her a tight smile. "Practice avoidance people. I personally don't care if you 'rumble' with them every now and again, makes for some good publicity, but this order comes from a higher power: Trent."

"Okay, we gotcha. No ROXY boxing," Aiden said, folding up his itinerary. "Now, can we go?"

**--**

Ashley sidled on up next to Spencer in the hallway as the girl was organizing her things to leave. "So, uh, where are you going now?"

"Nowhere in particular. I was just gonna head back home," Spencer replied, trying to control her breathing which was difficult with Ashley being so close.

"You feel like grabbing something to eat?" the brunette asked hopefully. She really hoped their awkwardness wasn't as obvious visibly as it was to her. Otherwise, everyone would know something was up. Ashley leaned forward so that her lips were near her ear. "There's someone I want you to meet," she whispered, her lips brushing against the girl's skin with every word.

"I am pretty hungry actually," Spencer said, finally actually looking the other girl in the face, instantly falling into stare-mode.

"Awesome," Aiden said, coming out of nowhere. "Do you think we could join you? I'm starving."

"I actually wanted to go out alone, babe," Kyla quickly intervened, watching her sister's eyes bug out. "Just you and me."

"Oh, alright," Aiden conceded, pretending to be bothered but actually very far from it. "Oh Ash, Karen said to go…uh, call her, because Michelle had…something." He was stumbling over his words horribly, trying not to give anything away, because, as far as he knew, Spencer was still out of the loop.

"I know," Ashley said, shaking her head as Kyla drug the boy away. But pretty soon her attention was back on Spencer. No surprise there. "Do you need a ride?"

"I do actually. Know of anyone who could help me out?" the blonde teased.

"Brandon might be able to help you," Ashley said, raising an eyebrow.

"You're right. Maybe I can ask him but who knows how he'll want me to pay him back," Spencer said with a smile, turning around and only getting a few paces away before…

"Get your ass back here Blondie,"

"Ooh, authoritative. Me likey," she drawled with a goofy smile.

"Oh really," Ashley smiled back, her eyes set on Spencer's. "Oh man."

"What?" Spencer asked, whirling around to look behind her.

"We really have to get out of here,"

"Why? What's wrong?" she asked, beyond worried now. That is until Ashley stepped closer. Then she pretty much forgot how to worry, or what the word worry even meant for that matter.

"It's just…well, I really want to kiss you right now, and I don't think we'll be any good at keeping this under wraps if we start making out in front of people," Ashley whispered, her eyes locked on the blonde's.

"Point taken,"

"Unfortunately, you're not. I must do something about that,"

"Well, I'm right here." Spencer held her arms out playfully. "Take me."

Ashley grinned idiotically and grabbed the girl's hand, walking them briskly all the way to the car.

They were too caught up in one another to notice the hallway door they were standing in front of creak open. The person slipped out of the darkness, hitting the stop button on the digital recorder and stuffing it into their pocket, walking away before they could be detected.

**--**

_Somebody once asked could I 'spare some change for gas? I need to get myself away from this place'_

_I said 'Yep, what a concept. I could use a little fuel myself and we could all use a little chhhhaaaaangge'_

"Would you shut the hell up?" Madison hissed, yanking the boy back down to her bed. "We're on surveillance."

"This is boring. Nothing's gonna happen," Brandon maintained, sighing wearily and focusing on the stilled television. It was actually a live shot but for the past hour all they've seen was an oak door.

"Maybe something would if you'd just shut up," Madison grumbled, annoyed. It was bad enough that their little tip-off wasn't paying off, but to hear Brandon bitch about it every five minutes.

"Shut me up then," he said coyly, eyeing her rather conspicuously.

"No. I can't even be bothered with that tonight. It's that time, you know,"

Brandon made a disgusted face, but chilled out. "Man, that both sucks and blows…" he said with a smirk. "Like Tila Tequila."

Madison threw a pillow at him as she laughed. "Didn't you hook up with her?"

"Didn't you?" he asked, not being serious at all, just wanting to see Madison's reaction.

"Ew, NO!" the girl squealed, now smothering him with a pillow. "Don't even insinuate things like that. You never know who could be listening."

"Nobody cares about who we hook up with," Brandon said, throwing her off of him. "That's the advantage of being so…" What was the word? "…open," he concluded with a smile, pinning her arms above her head as he straddled her.

"We have got to stop doing this," she muttered, reaching up to capture his lips.

"I agree,"

"No, seriously. Someone's walking up onto the door stoop," she said, pushing him off of her and throwing the headphones back on. "What the hell?" she said immediately after, pulling the things off of her ears. "Switch the station back," she hissed at him, hurriedly. "I can't hear anything."

Brandon scrambled toward the dial, switching the channel from some top 40 station to the audio input.

Madison only heard Timmy thank the dark figure on the stoop, accepting the large manila envelope. There wasn't much defining detail to the person. They were wearing all black, including gloves. And the person never once looked up, making it hard to spot any distinguishing facial features.

"Well, that was a bust," he sighed, grumpily, rubbing his nose in irritation.

"Not entirely. Timmy's in on it too, whatever it is. And, I know how to get to Timmy," she smiled, her true vixen nature making a (not so) surprise visit.

"You're willing to do all of that…for Tasha? Okay, now I'm skeptical. What's in it for you?"

"Can't I do something nice for a change?"

"No," Brandon answered matter-of-factly.

"Fine. I have ulterior motives but I can't discuss anything just yet. Are you happy now?"

"Euphoric," he replied, smugly.

"Word of the day calendar?" she asked him, raising a brow.

"Euphoric?"

**--**

"Ugh, this is so frustrating," Tasha said, throwing down her crutches. Well, crutch. If she threw them both down she wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

Hi-OH!

Kyla just looked on sympathetically as the girl, not too gracefully, slid into the booth with her and Aiden. They'd offered to help… politely.

But they'd been turned down, not so politely.

"Hey, it's my favorite patrons," Chelsea said, smiling at the three of them. "Where have you guys been hiding?"

"Oh you know us Chels. We've been around," Kyla said sweetly, refusing a menu like she always did. She had it down cold.

"Kicking ROXY's ass. I saw," Chelsea, giggled a little as Aiden held his hand up for a high-five. "Serves them right. They've been trash-talking for the longest."

"Hell yeah, they have," Aiden said, a little too loudly, but the swearing and the high-five really pumped him up.

"I heard about your ankle too Tash, I'm sorry,"

"Thanks Chelsea," Tasha smiled, before adding, "I'm okay though," not too convincingly.

"Oh, trust me, I know," Chelsea said playfully, fishing around in her apron for something. "And…that guy over there," Chelsea looked behind the girl to the table where some really cute guy waved his beer bottle at them. "He wanted me to give you this." Chelsea handed her a carefully folded piece of paper, walking away to put in their usual order.

Tasha smiled warmly at the guy before opening the little note. _You look sad. And I don't really know you but ice cream has been known to stop wars_

She looked back over her shoulder at the boy, and he smile again, looking a little shy. It was oddly endearing.

"Girl, he's cute," Kyla said, bumping Tasha's shoulder playfully. "I say 'go say hi'."

"I say, 'Don't talk to strangers'," Aiden said, crossing his arms across his chest. Kyla merely rolled her eyes at him. The boy was fiercely protective of all the girls. It was his best and worst quality.

"Just go and if he tries to get fresh with you, smack him over the head with your crutch," Kyla said, helping the girl up this time.

Tasha had barely gotten three feet away when she caught a slick spot on the floor, but luckily, her new Prince Charming was very astute and had been making his way over when he saw the girl get up.

He caught her, holding on slightly as she regained her balance, her cheeks turning a bright rosy color from both the exertion and the embarrassment.

"Hi," she said, finally able to stand on her own again.

"Hello," the guy said, or squeaked rather. His voice was somewhat strange to her ears.

But however it sounded to her, it would sound even stranger to him.

When you consider he'd never heard it.

**--**

Ashley pushed open the door then knocked on it quickly, still holding onto Spencer's hand with the other one. "Is anybody home?"

She heard little footsteps thunder in her direction and braced herself for the welcome attack.

"Mommy!" Michelle practically yelled, running straight at her and then jumping at the last moment, right into her mother's more than willing embrace.

"Hey baby. How are you feeling, huh? Mommy heard you were sick," she asked the little girl, walking into the living room. She turned slightly when she noticed Spencer wasn't following.

"You coming?"

"Uh…I," Spencer let out her breath. "I really don't know."

"Come on Spence," Ashley said, giving the girl her best smile. "I promise she won't bite."

Spencer rolled her eyes but managed to get her feet to move anyway, joining them in the immaculate living room. She almost didn't want to sit down.

"I know. It's like stepping into a time warp or something," Ashley commented, picking up on Spencer's hesitation. "Just sit anywhere. Trust me she'll sanitize it when we leave."

"Who?"

"I think she's referring to me," Karen said, standing in the open doorway, the way the light spilled in behind her was nothing short of scary, so it wasn't surprising when Michelle clung even tighter to Ashley's neck.

"We've never formally met," the eldest Davies said, holding out her hand to Spencer as she walked over to her. "I'm Karen."

"Spencer," the blonde said, smiling politely.

"Penser," Michelle echoed, sort of. "She surfy like Mommy."

"I know," Karen said, appeasing the little girl. "She does a lot of other things like Mommy too."

"Karen," Ashley warned, way too tired to get into this.

"I'm done. I'm not saying a word. I just came down to say good night to Michelle. I trust now that you're here you'll be staying the night with her?"

"Well, I uh-"

"Good. C'mere Chelley. Give Aunt Karen a bedtime hug and kiss,"

And because she was that damn cute she did.

"I know you two will have good night." And, with that, Karen Davies was gone.

"What was that about?"

"She thinks that since she saw the paper that me and you are …are uh…"

"Oh," Spencer nodded in understanding, still keeping her distance between herself and the mother/daughter combo.

"No one knows anything," she assured the blonde, hesitating a moment before spilling the beans. "Except Kyla," she muttered out, bracing herself for the fierce reaction.

"And my brother," Spencer answered, blushing for some Godforsaken reason. "I didn't tell him everything of course, but he knows something is going on."

"Yeah," Ashley replied softly, glancing at the blonde before re-focusing her attention on her daughter. "You're all set for bed, huh beautiful?" she asked Michelle, and the little girl nodded enthusiastically. "Guess we should go tuck you in," Ashley stood, holding Michelle on her hip. She reached down for Spencer's hand and was surprised when the blonde girl shook it off.

"You should just uh, go ahead. I'll be here when you get back,"

"You can come with us,"

"I don't want to intrude,"

Ashley opened her mouth to assure her that she wouldn't be but her clone beat her to it. "Penser, come. It's bed time," Michelle said, giving the blonde a look that said, "stop stalling".

The blonde followed behind them up the stairs, her anxiety growing with every step. Ashley, somehow sensing this, stopped halfway and grabbed the blonde's hand in her free one, tracing her thumb along the contours of her knuckles.

They walked into Michelle's beautifully designed room. It went without saying that this little girl was spoiled beyond measure. The whole thing was Sesame Street themed, even down to her little canopy bed.

"Wow," Spencer breathed as Ashley turned the dimmer dial, illuminating the room just a bit. Michelle hurriedly scrambled under the covers as soon as she put her down, waiting patiently to be tucked in.

"This'll only take a minute," she whispered to Spencer who was content to just stand in the doorway and watch them.

Then she bit her tongue in order to not laugh at what happened next.

_"Here comes bedtime choo-choo train_

_Chuggin' down the nighttime lane_

_Coming to take the girls away_

_To dream sweet dreams in sleepy land,"_ Ashley sung this to her daughter as she sat down beside her on the bed, pulling the covers up to her chin, and stroking her hair lovingly. Within moments the little girl was sleeping soundly.

Ashley leaned over and turned on the cookie monster nightlight before leaning down and pressing a kiss to Michelle's forehead.

"She's beautiful," Spencer said quietly, turning off the main light for Ashley.

"She is," Ashley agreed, pushing herself off the bed as softly as she could, not wanting to disturb Michelle.

"Just like her mother," Spencer added, looking down at the floor shyly, even as she took a tentative step into the room, closer to Ashley.

"Thank you," the brunette said, closing the distance between them quickly. "So, uh, what do you want to do now? I'm sure that Karen left some food out if you're hungry," she told the girl, trailing her fingers down Spencer's arm until they intertwined with Spencer's.

"That sounds good," Spencer whispered, tugging on Ashley's hands as she walked them backwards, back out of the bedroom, leaving the door open in case Michelle woke up looking for someone to slay the monsters in her closet. Cookie monster helped out most of the time, but he couldn't get the really big monsters.

Sure enough, Karen had left the food out, actually warming in anticipation of the visitors. Maybe the girl wasn't all bad.

"Lasagna?!" Ashley squealed, delighted. "Score!"

"Ashley, shhh. You're gonna wake up the baby," Spencer admonished, smiling though.

"Sorry. I get a little carried away when it comes to Italian food," the brunette said, looking a little sheepish. She pointed over to a cabinet. "Gah, grab me a plate or something before I drool all over this."

"Sure thing…Garfield," Spencer added under her breath, snickering quietly.

"Heard that," Ashley muttered back, smiling while slicing up the lasagna.

"Can I ask you something?" the blonde said, grabbing the plates out of the cupboard and turning around, fixing her gaze on Ashley's back.

"Go ahead,"

"Why's your sister so…I don't know, mean to you?"

Ashley's shoulders slumped.

"I mean, I don't know if she's mean- or, I dunno. I'm sorry. That was stupid." Spencer quickly tried to backtrack, fearing maybe she'd gotten too personal.

"It's not that," Ashley assured her, feeling a little torn. She turned to face her quite suddenly. "It's, she's complicated."

The blonde smiled slightly. "Aren't we all?"

"More complicated than most," Ashley said, smiling too. "I'll tell you about it, soon. But, I really don't want to lay something that heavy on you," she rolled her eyes a little at that last statement. "I mean something _else_ that heavy."

Spencer couldn't help giggling a little. "I was gonna say."

"Let's eat?"

"That would probably be best, considering your stomach sounds like a revved up motorcycle right about now,"

Ashley scoffed, plating the lasagna. "Whatever. Your stomach sounds like the Indy 500."

"Yeah," Spencer conceded, nodding. She stepped even closer to the girl who had turned back away from her, busy with the lasagna. "I am hungry."

"Well, let's get you fed so-" Ashley's words stuttered to a stop as she turned to find that she was a breath away from Spencer.

"So?" Spencer questioned her, smirking, even though her heart was going a mile a minute.

"I don't…remember," Ashley finally whispered out, after a few failed attempts.

Spencer kind of forgot too, the girl being so close erasing everything from her memory. All she cared to remember was the feel of Ashley's lips sliding against her own.

So she did.

Lasagna be damned.


	18. Low Profile

**A/N: **It's that time again. Getting to know you time. This time I want you guys to tell me the best and worst thing you've ever done in life thus far. I'll kick it off, Best thing I ever did was cut loose those posers that called themselves my friends. Worst thing I ever did, go after my ex-girlfriend's girlfriend. Hands down - worst thing. Anyway, you guys keep 'em coming and I will too with the fic. It's interesting to have something to read you know because man, are there very little fics out there or what?

Thanks,

MGMK

**---**

_**16 Years Ago**_

_**Trenton, New Jersey**_

"_Come on, love. We mustn't be late. The sitters must be out of their minds by now," Katherine was saying to her husband as they hurried home from their date._

"_Ah, but the night is still young," Anthony told her, grasping her playfully about the waist, twirling her around. Still young and in love, the Morgans exuded happiness wherever they went. And happiness tended to follow them._

_On this night, however, they wouldn't be so lucky._

_An earth-shattering scream echoed throughout the night and Anthony and Katherine froze upon hearing it. The creature, whoever it was, appeared to be in so much pain and, although they probably knew better, the couple couldn't help investigating. It was the only humane thing to do._

_Very quietly, the pair bravely made their way to the alley entryway where, peering down the darkened corridor, they saw a man struggling against his assailant, tugging at the wire that was being pulled with such force against his throat. The larger man, stood behind him, gritting his teeth with the exertion. He wasn't aware of the couple, and even still failed to notice them, when, with his task completed, he hurried off in the opposite direction, disappearing further into the shadows. Not quickly enough though, for they recognized him instantly, from his gait and the hideous scar trailing along the right side of his face. It was Louie Gallo, appropriately nicknamed "The Strangler" after his preferred method of execution. He was also a known to be mob assassin._

_Once they were sure he had cleared the vicinity they rushed over to the hushed figure, Anthony pulling out his (prehistoric) cellular phone. The ambulance arrived shortly after, but like they'd expected, the man was dead and now they were witnesses to a murder._

Aiden awoke with a start breathing heavily.

Kyla stirred next to him, placing a hand on his heaving chest, feeling his heart almost beating out of it. "What's wrong, babe?"

"I…I don't know. I just…I feel like something's gonna happen. Something bad,"

"Like what?"

"Call Karen's," he blurted out, looking worriedly over at the phone. He would do it himself but he'd temporarily forgotten the number.

"Okay," Kyla said slowly, grabbing the receiver off her nightstand and dialing the number from memory, her eyes still on his darkly illuminated form, the light from the cordless casting his worried face with a sickly green glow. "Hey," she said quietly to the voice that answered. "Ash?"

"Kyla?" Ashley asked, sitting up in the bed she and Spencer were sharing. She glanced over at the slumbering blonde before continuing quietly. "What time is it? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Kyla answered while looking at Aiden and then rolling her eyes at his disapproving look. "Aiden's acting weird again."

"Is Michelle okay?" he asked, loudly enough so that Ashley could hear.

"She's fine. She was a little sick before…a stomach thing, but she's better now,"

"I mean, can you go check on her?" he asked Ashley, this time taking the receiver away from Kyla. "I'm just…I have this weird feeling–"

"I'm going. I'm going," Ashley cut him off, easing out of the bed as gently as she could.

She crept down the hallway to her daughter's open bedroom and peered inside, finding all was well. Still, she inched closer to the little girl, paying close attention to her light snore. "She's fine Aiden," she whispered, stroking the girl's face with care. "Drooling a little, but she's fine."

Aiden let out an immense breath. He was so very relieved.

"I'm sorry for waking you Ash, but…I, you know–"

"It's okay," Ashley assured him, creeping back out of Michelle's room after placing a light kiss to the sleeping girl's cheek. "It's better than having you rush over here."

"Yeah. Thanks Ash,"

"Night Aide."

She hastily made her way back into the bedroom, expecting to find the blonde still slumbering. She wasn't.

In fact, she was sitting up in the bed, rubbing her arm sleepily, her bed hair completing her barely awake yet beautiful look.

"Where'd you go?" Spencer asked her, eyeing the phone in her hand.

"I went to check up on Michelle," she started, holding up the phone. "Aiden was worried."

"Oh," Spencer replied through a yawn, barely keeping her eyes open. "How is she?"

"She's fine," Ashley replied with a smile, both at the way Spencer looked and her concern. Both were endearing. She climbed back into the bed, crawling under the covers immediately.

"Perfect," Spencer whispered out, settling back into the bed, not surprised when Ashley pulled her closer.

Within seconds the girl was asleep again and Ashley tucked a kiss into the crown of her head, while Spencer unwittingly buried her face more into Ashley's chest, her arms moving to hold her tighter.

"You are," Ashley whispered, before sleep overcame her as well.

**--**

"You good now?" Kyla asked him after he had ended the call.

"Yeah," he replied, feeling much better, but he couldn't shake the nagging feeling.

"Maybe you just forgot to do something," she mumbled, turning back over to go back to sleep.

"Maybe," he replied, but he'd only just registered her comment. He was wracking his brain, trying to think, which normally was difficult task for him anyway. It was nearly impossible when compounded with his early morning grogginess.

"Just go back to sleep Aiden," Kyla murmured, tugging on his arm to wrap around her waist.

He obliged her by lying down; sleep not coming 'til much later.

That nagging feeling in his gut didn't leave though.

_The investigation had been ongoing for years. _

_The Mancinis were the most feared and thus respected crime family in the tri-state area and, as such, the police were constantly after them._

_Their best method of defense: cut their legs out from underneath them. And the way to do that was to remove the muscle, also known as the enforcers._

"_The Strangler" was on that list but he'd always evaded conviction. Leads would run dry on murders or witnesses would turn up dead. That kind of thing. Which made what Anthony Morgan was about to do really brave or unbelievably stupid._

"_Are you sure you want to do this Anthony? Think of the children," Katherine asked him on the day of the trial. They day the prosecution would call him to the stand and he'd stand before the accused; no barriers, no darkness to obscure his face. The only comfort he could take was in the fact that his appearance would be altered by a disguise of some sort._

"_I am, sweetheart. I don't want my children to grow up in a world where these are the things they have to deal with. If putting away this man helps make the world even the tiniest bit safer, then it's well worth it,"_

_So that's precisely what he did. After giving his testimony, the Morgans were moved into protective custody and then the witness protection program for their own safety._

_It was a sad day when the Morgans bid adieu to New Jersey, their family and friends, and traveled by train to California; Leaving their old lives behind to start anew, the happy couple and their four small children._

Karen sat at her desk, nursing a lukewarm cup of coffee, her mind miles away. It was amazing how there were some things you could remember like they happened just yesterday, no matter how many years ago in the past they were.

_She was only six then, crouching down outside her parents' bedroom, hearing the whispered words: 'California', 'moving', 'Davies'. She didn't know what any of it meant but it all made sense soon. It was the most exciting time in her young life, riding that train cross-country. They'd run into countless people and were introduced. The polite children she and her brother were raised to be insured their cordiality, even when their Mom and Dad kept giving the newfound acquaintances false names. Her "almost littlest" sister, as she referred to her as, was full of precocious wonder and followed her around the stage cars with earnest, getting into whatever mischief they could, seeing as their parents never really let them out of their sight._

_Soon though, the buildings turned to grassland, and the prairie turned to mountains. They were nearing their new destination…their new lives._

_That was the day Raife and Christine arrived in Los Angeles, California._

Karen picked up the picture of them arriving at the train station and smiled.

_Her mother and father smiled warmly at the photographer, whoever he/she must've been. Raife was holding a four-year-old Adam on his hip as they both waved happily at the camera. Christine was cradling a baby Kyla, her nose brushing against the girl's soft cheek. And Karen and Ashley stood dead center, the older girl clinging to her baby sister adorably. _

That was then, and then lasted up until about four years ago.

_She was the last to get to the hospital and when she arrived she found Kyla first, the little girl, only thirteen then, crying uncontrollably. Adam was standing at the nurses' station, trying to get information but since he was a minor, none was forthcoming. She spotted a bleary-eyed Aiden comforting her "almost littlest" sister and was relieved, but it was all short-lived._

_As was her time with her parents._

_It was October 16, 2003. A Tuesday. _

_And her 18__th__ birthday._

_It wasn't an immediate resentment but her dislike might have been born overnight. She was too old when they first moved for them to not have to explain anything to her. They'd changed their names, changed her last one, and moved away from all the young girl had ever known._

_She demanded answers and at the ripe old age of ten, she got them. Still, she knew it was best to keep this information to herself, and, after all those years, she'd believed them to be safe. What's the point in worrying her siblings? Still, she'd begged Ashley to try to keep her celebrity to a minimum. The girl was quickly becoming a surfing prodigy, and at ten she had national surfing magazines phoning her for interviews. It was an excellent opportunity for the family to grow, and the finances a full-blown athletic celebrity could provide would set them on easy street for a while. Still, Karen discouraged it and Ashley obliged…that is, until she was thirteen._

"_I don't understand. Why won't you just let this happen for me?" Ashley asked her one night, after their parents had gone to sleep. "It'll be good for all of us and you know it._

_And it could be good. It could be very good. But the downside was so much greater._

"_Ash, please don't question me on this okay? I've never steered you wrong before. I just…I need you to trust me, okay?" she implored, because for some reason, she knew she was right about this._

"_I always trust you Kare," the younger girl said, wiping her eyes a little as they were misting up. "But, I can't just sit back and let my dream slip away. I can't." _

_Her parents wouldn't allow Ashley's dreams to be smothered either and stood in unity behind the girl's decision to go pro. _

_The success was instantaneous, as was the celebrity, spurred mostly by the fact that she was so young and so talented. It was unheard of. But the spotlight came with consequences. _

_Dire consequences. They were being followed, harassed daily with strange phone calls from strange men._

_Then one day, that all stopped._

_October 16, 2003._

_And, according to Karen, it was all Ashley's fault._

It was irrational to think that way, and sometimes she told herself that, which is probably why she'd never told Ashley or any other sibling the extent of her knowledge about their parents' murder.

In that way, she was probably the best big sister anyone could ask for.

But still, she couldn't help resent Ashley's celebrity, especially considering the price it'd cost. Her parents, her future; both were lost.

**--**

Spencer awoke to eyes.

Bright, brown, familiar eyes.

"Morning Penser," Michelle said, putting down the girl's eyelid.

"Good morning," Spencer said, chuckling slightly.

"You wakey now?" the little girl asked, extremely hopeful.

Spencer would find out soon enough what her eagerness was all about.

"Uh huh," she muttered slowly.

"Yes!" the little one exclaimed, getting to her feet in an instant, jumping on Ashley's bed gleefully.

"Michelle. Michelle didn't I tell you to wait until Spencer was awake?" Ashley said, barging into the room.

"Penser _is_ wakey, Mommy," the girl told her, still jumping.

"Alright," Ashley said, before joining her daughter. It was a morning ritual.

Spencer, who smartly moved into an Indian-seated style position watched in amusement and maybe wonder as Ashley carried on with the little girl.

"Come on Penser. Jump with us," Michelle giggled, grabbing the blonde's hand in a blatant attempt to pull her up.

Spencer obliged the young one and soon she, Ashley, and Michelle were howling in laughter, crashing into each other as they hopped around.

"Uh…hey," Aiden's amused voice could be heard from the doorway. He and Kyla stood there watching them…uh, them.

Spencer blushed immediately and scrambled under the covers while Ashley merely stopped jumping.

Michelle was the only one who actually spoke. "Daddy!" she yelled, running full steam ahead at him, clamping onto his legs.

"Hiya Pumpkin, having fun?" he asked her and Kyla shared a pointed look with her sister and Spencer. "She's not the only one," she said, making Spencer redden even further.

"Huh?" Aiden asked, pausing mid-raspberry.

"Nothing," Kyla responded quickly, smiling brightly.

"Anyway, we came by to see if Ashley wanted to go hit the wave with us but since you're here, you're welcome to join too Spencer," Aiden said, placing his little girl on his shoulders.

"Uh, sure," Spencer agreed after sharing a look with Ashley. "I don't have my board though. And we haven't even had breakfast yet."

"You needn't worry about that," Aiden told her, holding up a bag full of breakfast burritos. "Now go on. Get dressed already."

**--**

"You don't eat much do you?" Ricardo asked, well wrote.

It was a temporary solution to the communication problem. She couldn't sign and he couldn't talk.

"I eat plenty," Tasha said, making sure to keep her face in his line of vision. He was a rather capable lip-reader. "I'm just still trying to be very lady-like around you. Seeing as we hardly know each other," she joked, tearing off another small piece of bagel.

He laughed heartily and scribbled down on the scrap of paper they were using. "Try not to starve yourself too much. Us Italians like our women with a little meat on their bones."

"We'll see," she said, smiling at him warmly. Ricardo, or Ricky, was actually in Los Angeles on business, looking for a sponsor for a new energy drink. She just happened to drink said energy drink.

Isn't it funny how life works out? Hmm…

"So, where are your friends?" he asked her.

"I don't know, they asked me about something earlier but, I was pretty out of it,"

"Oh," he nodded. "There was actually something I wanted to ask you. Non-business of course?"

"Ask away?"

"Would you be interested in joining me for dinner Friday night? It's the only one I have free,"

"I'd, um, love to but…that's the same night I was getting my award. Well, they did say we could bring a guest. Would you like to come with me?"

"That'd be awesome," he wrote, even putting down a little smiley face.

He was only supposed to be in LA for a little while, but, now that he'd found _her_, maybe he'd stay a little while longer.

**--**

"Where are we?" Spencer asked, looking around the completely deserted beach.

There wasn't a person for miles and yet the waters were crystal blue, the sand completely clean. It was unreal.

"Paradise," Aiden said cryptically. "Also know as, KaTo's personal playing grounds."

"Yeah, it's a top secret spot Blondie, so you can't tell anyone okay?" Ashley told her, spending half the time looking at her lips, the other half looking at her barely covered boobs.

"Gotcha," Spencer smirked, walking past the brunette making sure to put a little something extra in the twist of her hips in case the brunette was watching.

Snort.

In case.

Brandon drove his truck almost to the water's edge so that they could unload the jet skis with no complication.

As well as Michelle's beach equipment.

It was a play day, because all work and no play makes KaTo…something or another. I forget.

"Come on Chelley sweetie," Ashley said, beckoning the little girl onward. "Let's go swimming."

"Yay! Come on Daddy," she said, grabbing Aiden's hand as he stood nearby.

"No baby, you go on with Mo- Aunt Ashley. I'm gonna stay here with Kyla, 'kay?" he said, sharing a not so subtle look with Ashley.

Spencer bit the inside of her cheek to suppress a smile but she decided against it when the little girl grabbed her hand. "Will you go swimming with us?" Michelle asked her, looking up through her cute little bangs.

"I'd love to," Spencer told her, allowing herself to be dragged away.

"Too cute," Aiden said, watching his pride and joy pull the girl towards the water. "Don't you think?" he asked Kyla who was busy talking on her cell phone.

"Ky?" he asked, plopping down next to her.

"Huh?" she asked him, hurrying to close the phone. "What?"

"Michelle and Spencer? It's cute how much Pumpkin's into her, huh?"

"Yeah…cute," Kyla said absently, staring off into the sun.

"Who were you talking to?" he asked her, a little put off by her shall we say, inattentiveness.

"Just a promoter or something," she said, dismissively. "Let's go hit the wave. They're like 10 feet high. And the break…pristine."

"I love your surf talk," he said, instantly forgetting the other stuff. "Such a turn on."

"Come on, horndog," she said with a chuckle. "Let's go all cowabunga dude."

"God, you're killing me."

**--**

"Yeah, I know….It's bizarre, right?" Glen said, stirring some more sugar into his coffee. No wonder he was always on crank mode. His coffee was nothing but caffeine and sugar cane. "Yeah, but keep that between us alright. No, she doesn't know. Okay." His other line beeped. "Hey, can I put you on hold? I gotta take this…Oh, alright. I'll just talk to you later…Right. You didn't hear that from me…Later."

"Hello?"

"_Hello Glen,"_

"Hi Mom," he said, sitting up as if a metal pole had been inserted where the good Lord split him.

"_How are things?"_

"Things are good. How are you and Dad?"

"_We're doing fine sweetie. Busy, with work, but we're doing fine. It gets pretty lonely around here these days,"_

"Miss us, huh?"

"_Maybe a little. Tell me something. Do you and Spencer have any plans for later on in the week? Or the weekend?"_

"I work the day shift for the most part and Spence probably has a tournament, but other than that I think we're clear. Why?"

"_No reason,"_

"Mom?"

"_Just, you know, make sure you answer the doorbell."_

Click.

"Uh oh," Glen thought, swallowing heavily. "This can _not_ be good."

**--**

Brandon hit the lip and boosted some major air on that last turn, cranking out what easily could be given a 9 as a run.

"Whoo!" Aiden yelled, sitting stalled on a jet ski. "That's some wicked shit right there!"

"Daddy," Michelle scolded, seated just in front of him. "Bad word."

"Oops. Daddy's sorry," he smiled at her, ruffling her hair a little.

"Come on Aide," Madison said, holding the tow rope securely in her hands.

Aiden took off, pulling the girl up out of the water. Water skiing.

If you don't know it, try it.

Ashley, ever the multi-tasker, subtly checked out Spencer while critiquing her technique.

"Whew," Kyla vocalized her fatigue as she plopped down next to her. "I'm cashed." She followed the girl's line of sight. "But I see Spencer's still going strong," she commented slyly, trying not to smile when she saw Ashley struggle to hide a smirk.

"So, come on, tell me. Have you told her yet?" Kyla asked, taking a swig of water and almost dying when she glimpsed the look of abject horror on Ashley's face.

"Are you crazy?!" she practically squealed. "I can't tell her that. And you'd better not either Kyla," the girl threatened, waving a finger in her younger sister's face.

"Okay," Kyla chuckled. "Okay. Your secret's safe with me," she added, hiding her grin with the water bottle again. "But…it might not be all that bad you know? If and when it finally comes out I mean."

"Can you just…stop talking about it?" Ashley asked, seriously disturbed. This whole thing with Spencer was a whole different world for her and she was nowhere near walking on terra firmitas. It just felt like the entire world was shifting beneath her and while she seemed like she was on top of things, she just couldn't keep up.

She could, however, continue watching Spencer. That, she had no qualms with.

"Man, she can really carve can't she?" Kyla commented, watching the ease with which Spencer maneuvered her board across the wave. It was akin to watching Ashley really.

And the girl could carve and whatever else it was surfers did. Spencer was so precise in her movements, still her style had so much fluidity to it, it seemed like it was all happening naturally, without her even being aware of it.

"Yo Spence look out!" Brandon called out, unable to stop his momentum and, of course, Mother Nature. The wave he was riding suddenly bottomed out and, before he knew it, him and a lot of water was barreling towards Spencer, stuffing them both.

Brandon emerged right next to her, spitting out a steady stream of water. "You alright?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so," she managed, still catching her breath. His warning, although still rather late, came just in time for her to brace for impact.

Brandon's warning however fell on deaf ears as he emerged from the water with Spencer in tow.

"What the hell was that?!" Ashley yelled, shoving him in the chest, hard, completely catching him off-guard.

"AH! Get off me, crazy," he yelled, shielding his face, because chicks always went for the face or the– "Ooh," he squeaked out.

"That's right buddy. Next time pick on someone your own size," she said, pushing herself up off of him and storming off, barely brushing Kyla.

Spencer, not really knowing what else to do, snickered and allowed herself to be dragged away while Brandon writhed on the ground. Aiden motored over with Madison laughing madly.

"Did he get Ashley'd?" he asked Kyla and the girl merely nodded.

"Very well."

**--**

"The nerve of that asshole," Ashley said, still livid. It was quite amusing actually.

"Um…Ashley?" Spencer tried to say.

"He completely railroaded you," the brunette continued to mutter, marching them off even further, her destination no longer evident.

"Ash?" she tired again.

"Can't even apologize–"

"Ow! Ashley, I'm hurt," Spencer said, holding her elbow, effectively stopping Ashley in her tracks.

"Oh my God, are you okay?" Ashley asked her, worry etched all over her face as she hurriedly scanned Spencer for some tangible injury.

"I'm fine," Spencer smiled. "I just wanted to make sure you were still with us…on this planet."

Ashley narrowed her eyes. "That was devilish Carlin."

"Well I learn from the best,"

"Let me guess. Moi?"

"No. Satan,"

"I didn't know you guys were fans,"

"Totally. He introduced me to the queer life," she said flatly and with no hint of amusement, making it all the more hilarious.

Ashley laughed aloud because, well, dude, that was just funny.

"You…" she started, forgetting what she was gonna say instantly. Staring into Spencer's eyes seemed to have that affect on her. "You…"

"I what?" Spencer asked, subtly but obviously not, checking Ashley out. She let her eyes roam downward before dragging them back up slowly to meet the brunette's.

"I dunno," Ashley said, dragging her into the brush before finally letting go and kissing her. It was going to be hard, hiding this attraction…this obsession.

"Bashley," Spencer said, weakly objecting. They weren't too far away from everyone else. There was the very real possibility that they could get caught.

There was also the very real possibility that they could get off.

Guess which one swayed her decision?

**--**

**Meanwhile…**

The man stepped off of the airplane, a little overdressed for the California weather. He slipped his sunglasses on and climbed down the boarding ladder intent on finding his luggage.

Yes, Louis Gallo Junior had finally made it to Los Angeles. It was time to handle some business.


	19. Something You Said I Misunderstood

**Something You Said I Misunderstood **

Trent looked to his securely locked office door one more time before turning his complete attention back to the phone.

"I still don't understand why you're calling me. I thought it wasn't safe."

"_We can't be concerned with things like that anymore. Just make sure you keep things very hush-hush around there. Try not to attract any unnecessary attention,"_

'Yeah right,' Trent thought. These kids were practically walking talking billboards.

"I'm gonna try,"

"_No try, do," the voice corrected. "It's of utmost importance. It's a matter of life and death Trent."_

"Understood," the manager said, setting his jaw.

"_Good. You'll be receiving another phone call from me shortly." _And with that, the voice hung up.

Trent rubbed his face as he placed the phone back in its cradle. He literally jumped when his door swung open and an over-enthusiastic Adam came bustling through.

"Guess who's gonna be headlining the Pro Tour?" he asked Trent.

"No one from our team," Trent responded, trying not to cringe at the young man's dejected look.

"Why not?"

"I told you. We need to lay low. Laying low involves less publicity, not more."

"Okay," Adam reluctantly caved. "But what am I supposed to tell _The Advocate_? They want to interview Ashley about being out and in the sports realm and she is gay you know."

Trent massaged his temples. "Are they gonna ask anything personal?"

"I dunno. Possibly. It is an interview," Adam told him, now a little ticked with the constant buffers. How can anyone's career move with such tight restrictions?

"I'll tell you what. Interview must be attended by you. No extremely personal questions and I want to read the rough and final edits personally, understood?"

"Yeah, sure," Adam agreed, happily taking whatever he could get. "Oh, and Spencer has one too."

"With _The Advocate_?" Trent asked, his face twisting. "But she isn't gay, is she?"

Adam tried very hard to contain his smile. "Who knows? I'm uh, I'm gonna go get this interview set up. Is Spencer's a go?"

"I guess. What harm could it do?" Trent asked, turning back to his computer.

"Absolutely none?" Adam jokingly asked, chuckling a bit at the amused but not so much look Trent gave him. "You want the final edits for that one too don't you?"

"And they said you weren't gonna be too bright," Trent commented with a smile.

"Who said?" Adam asked absently, now packing up his own things.

"Oh, no one. Just talking…crazy," Trent haltingly replied, hoping that answer satisfied the young man.

"Alright," Adam said, dismissing the comment entirely, before turning towards the door. "Golf? Later?" he asked, hopeful. Trent was almost like a father to him now.

"Okay, kid. Now, get outta here," he said, shaking his head as Adam filed out.

Every day that kid reminded him more and more of his brother.

**--**

"So, how exactly is this going to work?" Spencer asked, climbing out of the passenger seat of Ashley's car, Kyla scrambling out of the back.

"I'm going to do the talking and you just stand there and look pretty," Ashley told her, smiling adorably at the girl. "That shouldn't be too hard, should it?" she whispered into Spencer's ear as she stood a little closer to her.

Spencer blushed, even as she smiled against her will. "I should hope not."

"Are you guys gonna be doing that all day?" Kyla asked loudly. "Because if so, I should have stayed home with Aiden."

"Shut up," Ashley snapped, instantly embarrassed. Why was she going so ga-ga over this girl? And then Spencer smiled sheepishly at her.

Oh, that's why.

"Ashley, babe," the car salesman said, walking over being completely over the top. "It's so good to see you. How's that Aston running?"

"She's perfect Armando but I'm actually not here for me today. My sister and–"

"Su novia?"

"No-whatta?" the girl asked, realization setting in immediately after. "No, _no._ Uh, this is Spencer. She's my teammate," Ashley clarified, glancing worriedly at the blonde.

"Oh, I see," Armando drawled, taking Spencer's hand and caressing it gently. "Good afternoon, beautiful."

Kyla stifled a giggle at Ashley's horrified face and spared her further subjugation by taking Spencer's hand in hers. "Come on, let's go look at the trucks."

**--**

Glen was putting the finishing touches on a huge display when someone he found vaguely familiar tapped him on the shoulder.

"Remember me?" Dina asked him, smiling sweetly and like a wave the memory washed over him.

"Oh," he said, slapping his head. "You're the– but, oh no. I can't be seen with you."

"Relax. No one here knows anything," she dismissed easily, dragging him off into one of the many empty aisles and pressing him up against a shelf. "I've been thinking about you."

"You're uh, pretty strong," he commented, swallowing against a dry throat.

"That's all?" she pouted, pressing even closer against him.

"Jesus," he kind of whispered out before getting his bearings about him. "You really can't be here right now. And I can't be seen with you," he continued, pushing her away rather roughly but she was a sturdy girl and managed only to stumble slightly before correcting her positioning.

"Fine," she accepted, backing away from him agonizingly slowly. "But I will be seeing you around Glen Carlin," she added, before whipping her entire body around and walking away, leaving him to contemplate his own pending disaster.

**--**

Armando and Kyla were standing just outside the vehicle Ashley and Spencer were sitting in.

"So, what about this one?" Ashley asked her, her eyes drawn to the blue ones belonging to the other girl.

"I don't know. Is it roomy enough?"

"I think there's plenty of room," Ashley drawled, moving a little closer.

"But the cab's so small,"

"Well, there's enough room to…" Ashley trailed off and whispered the rest in Spencer's ear, stealthily tucking a kiss behind it as she moved away again.

Spencer couldn't have gotten redder if she'd have painted her face.

"Ashley," she reprimanded weakly, vaguely aware that they were still in public. "Are you some kind of voyeur or something?" she asked, remembering how eager Ashley was to start something at the beach earlier.

Ashley shrugged, running her hands over the steering wheel. "Not that I know of."

"I think you are," Spencer smirked, trying to turn the tables but becoming increasingly distracted with the movements of Ashley's hands. "I think you'd love to have an audience in your bedroom."

"Explains the mirrors on the ceiling," the brunette replied quickly, effectively thwarting the blonde.

"You don't have–" Spencer stopped to think for a moment, not quite recalling. "Wait, do you?"

"Wanna find out?" Ashley asked, leaning in dangerously close again only to whip back when the door suddenly and very unexpectedly sprung open.

"Have you made a decision?" Armando asked expectantly and Spencer merely nodded, never taking her eyes off Ashley. "I'll take it."

**--**

Megan, not entirely concerned with her arch enemies at the moment, bumped into someone unexpected on her way out of the coffee shop, spilling her iced latte all over the unsuspecting lanky brunette.

Who also happened to be wearing white.

"I am so _so_ sorry," she began to apologize profusely, handing over her lone napkin in a lame gesture to attempt to clean the mess up.

"It's alright Megan. I know you didn't mean it," Tasha said endearingly, supporting herself on the crutches.

"Oh shit," Megan unwittingly mumbled, now doubly sorry. "I…Tasha, hey." 

"Hi," Tasha said, still trying to clean up. Fortunately, her Prince Charming was about to make another appearance.

"Here," Ricky squeaked, handing her a stack of napkins having witnessed the scene from inside the Starbucks.

"Thank you," the girl said with a smile, reluctantly going forward with some introductions. "Ricky," she started, making sure to enunciate correctly. "This is Megan," she stated clearly and he made a face to convey his not understanding, so she finger-spelt the name. "M-E-G-A-N." Her 'N' was actually an 'M' so he took her hand in his and made the appropriate sign. "N," he said, as clearly as possible, kissing the girl's knuckles when she got it right.

He turned to the jilted uninjured surfing star then. "Hello Megan," he said, smiling and holding out his hand for a formal handshake.

"Are you for real about this?" Megan said, looking past the guy to Tasha.

"About what?"

"Tasha," Megan stated, matter-of-factly. "He's a dude."

"So?"

"So, you're gay." 

Tasha rolled her eyes at the juvenile argument. "We've been through this before Megan. I like people. I don't see genders."

"Whatever Tasha. That is so played out; the indecisive card. You just don't know what you want," Megan sniped, more than miffed. It was one thing to be played over for Ashley. That, although bruising, was understandable, but to be tossed aside for some man; A disabled one at that?

Hell to the nizzo.

"I know exactly what I want. I'm just not as narrow-minded as you," Tasha said, poignancy in her tone.

"I'm not narrow-minded. You're just a whore. Timmy was right. I should've bounced your ass a long time ago," Megan fired back, storming off without giving the other girl the opportunity to have the last word.

Ricardo, completely bewildered, turned to the crutch-ridden girl with wide eyes. "What was that about?" he asked her, bringing out the notepad this time.

"You ever heard of the boomerang effect?" she asked.

And he nodded.

And for those of you who don't know:

The boomerang effect: _When you carelessly toss something away, it has the tendency to come back to you. And when it does, it will whack you upside the head_.

"Well, I just got whacked."

**--**

Madison sat unmoving in front of her computer, not even blinking really. There just had to be something on this Megan character. The girl's past was suspect to say the least, full of lots of empty spaces of time that she'd given no vindication for.

The girl was an enigma and for too long she had evaded the Latina. Not any more though. It was of crucial importance that she knows where this Megan Abubo came from. They were running out of time.

**--**

"There are no mirrors in here," Spencer said, observing the ceiling as Ashley finally pushed her inside the bedroom. The cat and mouse game had finally come to a head and the brunette was intent on making Spencer scream her name repeatedly.

So this conversation stuff had to cease.

"Shut up," she muttered against her lips, claiming her lips again as they tumbled into the bed.

"No seriously," Spencer mumbled in spite of being pre-occupied with the sensation of Ashley's tongue on her neck. "There aren't any. Are you a vampire?"

Ashley responded by taking some of Spencer's skin between her lips, nibbling gently but enough to elicit a quiet hiss.

Spencer's quiet chuckle matched her own as she instinctively pressed up into the other girl. "Is that a yes?"

"You're really…talkative…today," Ashley stated the obvious, kissing her lips tenderly at each pause.

"You…catch on…quickly," Spencer replied, mimicking Ashley's previous actions.

Ashley only laughed. It was really amazing her how different things were with Spencer. With past lovers, she'd never engage in any meaningful banter during, after, or before sex. With Spencer she couldn't get enough of it – the playfulness, the sincerity – it all made her fall even more in love with the girl.

Now, when would she tell her this?

"What's on your mind?" Spencer asked her, catching that somewhat glazed over look in her brown eyes; the one that meant she was thinking…and deeply.

"Nothing," Ashley replied quickly, diving in to sample her lips again but only getting cheek. "Hey–"

"Tell me," Spencer said simply, keeping the brunette at arm's length until she did. Well, middle finger's length.

"It was…nothing really. I was just…what do you want from me?" she asked, closing her eyes dejectedly afterward. She really didn't want to say that and not _that_ way.

"What…what do you mean?" Spencer asked, a little displeased. She tried to move out from underneath Ashley but the brunette held-fast and kept her there.

"Let me go Ashley," Spencer said, her tone combative, her face set to match it.

"No,"

"Ashley, let me go,"

"Never," Ashley said this time and Spencer sighed, all the fight gone from her just that quickly. "I only meant, what do you want me to do to you? Right now? I'll do what you want," Ashley told her, bringing her lips dangerously close to the other girl's ear. "Whatever you want," she whispered. "Just tell me."

Spencer flushed molten lava just then, an unbearable heat mounting between her legs. She swallowed thickly. "Tell you?"

"Tell me what makes you feel good," Ashley whispered, trailing the tip of her nose along Spencer's cheek. "Tell me what makes you tremble, Spencer. Tell me how to love you."

Ashley was systematically destroying her, of that she was sure. She couldn't vocalize all the things she wanted Ashley to do to her. That was impossible, even more so because it was only ever Ashley she'd let do those things to her.

It was fated.

"Just love me like it's you and me Ashley," Spencer told her quietly, sincerely.

So, that's what she did.

**--**

"Kyla," the girl reluctantly answered her cell, it having gone off three times in the last minute or so.

"_Hey, you. What's going on?"  
_

Kyla tried not to look too surprised as she answered the phone call, what with Aiden sitting to her right, and Karen to her left.

"Um, nothing. What's going on with you today?"

"_I'm good. Let's skip all the small talk. How did it go today?"_

"It went well. They're getting along perfectly."

"_Is that code word for they were barely able to keep their hands off each other?"_

Kyla smiled a measured smile. "Precisely."

"_Well, I can see that you're not in a position to talk more in- depth, so, we'll continue this later?"_

"I'll call you," Kyla replied before hanging up abruptly.

"Who was that?" Karen asked, cutting up some more chicken fingers for Michelle. Her love for finger foods was definitely a Davies-inherited trait.

"Trent," she answered rather casually, reaching for some more mashed potatoes. No one bothered to question her on it, even though she was lying through her teeth.

**--**

Brandon had just made contact with the walkway when he was tackled to the ground, hard.

"Let him up, Steven. He's clean," another voice said and Brandon finally opened his eyes to see his attacker. A big burly bear of a man.

The "Steven" pushed himself up off of the ground before helping Brandon to his feet with ease. He lifted the young man like he was a feather duster.

The other guy, dressed entirely in black, stepped forward, his face hidden behind too big sunglasses but Brandon suspected that was done purposely.

"What the hell?" Brandon asked, whispered really, because along with collapsing his lungs, the man was still huge and he didn't want to accidentally tick him off.

"What is your business here son?" the smaller man asked.

"None of your business," Brandon snipped but one advance from the big guy changed his mind. "I'm here to see my friends. What the hell are you and the Hulk doing here?"

The "Steven" grumbled and started cracking his knuckles but the little man kept him at bay with a wave of his hand. "That, doesn't concern you, got it kid?"

"Like hell it–"

"Unless," the little man interrupted. "Unless you _want_ broken legs. Is that what you want?"

"I…no,"

"So, you never saw us right?"

"I…never saw you," Brandon reluctantly agreed although silently vowing to follow up on this incident. Maybe he'd ask Madison.

"Good," the little man smiled and it looked kind of sadistic but before he could dwell on it too long he was being thrown in front of Ashley's door, the doorbell already ringing.

But when he turned around to look for any sign of what had just taken place, he saw nothing.

**--**

Ashley ignored the doorbell and just continued to watch Spencer as she slept.

The girl looked so peaceful, so at ease and so very beautiful. She was the quintessence of breathtaking.

She looked past Spencer to a photograph of her and Michelle taken when the little girl was just getting teeth, so she only had those four in the front, visible as she gave the biggest smile to the camera.

It always made her smile, but this time – this time her stomach twisted uncomfortably. How would this whole thing with Spencer work itself out? Everything was so undefined it was really scaring her. Spencer seemed fine with Michelle and everything but what about…if they became more? She couldn't ask Spencer to just step into a ready-made family, could she?

Deciding she wouldn't get the answers to those questions, at least not on her own, she skimmed her fingers softly through the other girl's blonde tresses, smiling as Spencer's eyes fluttered just a little before opening slowly. The blue becoming clearer by the second.

"Hey," Spencer whispered softly.

"Hi," Ashley replied just as softly and then frowned a little as Spencer's look turned pensive.

Spencer sat up slowly, keeping the blankets around her as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Ashley, there's something I have to tell you and I don't want you to freak out about it or anything. I'm just telling you because I think you should know."

Ashley, now a little alarmed, sat up as well, trying to meet Spencer's eye but was unsuccessful as the other girl kept hers glued to the bedspread.

"The other day, in the hotel, when we…you know. That was my first time," Spencer admitted shyly, her cheeks flushing.

"With a girl?" Ashley asked. "I figured because–"

"No," Spencer cut her off, taking a deep breath before finally looking her in the eye. "It was my first time, with anyone, ever."

The blonde held her breath when the brown eyes widened with recognition, then glazed over as Ashley no doubt re-played the experience in her mind to see whether or not she had done or said anything that may mar a first time sexual experience.

"Don't worry," Spencer assured her. "You were so great to me that night; more than great. You were perfect Ashley."

Obvious relief flooded the brunette's features, but she still was silent.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Spencer timidly asked, wrapping her arms around herself in a blatant gesture to hide the fact that her hands were trembling.

"I…uh…wow," Ashley fumbled, and then blushed slightly, a little mortified at her lack of articulation. "I just…you know…wow," she finished, giggling a little.

Spencer let a roughish smile spread across her face as she giggled too. "You said that already."

"I have no doubt in my mind that I'll say it again," Ashley assured her, complete with a little head nod. She took one of Spencer's shaking hands and brought it up to her mouth, placing a kiss on every knuckle. "I don't think there's anything I could say that would describe how I feel at the moment." Well that wasn't true at all, because she could think of three very real words that were ringing in her head like an "I love you" alarm. "It would probably be easier to show you," she grinned lasciviously, before topping Spencer again.

"Isn't it my turn to show you?" Spencer protested.

"I wasn't aware that we were keeping track of that," Ashley said, not really too concerned as she leaned back in to kiss her.

"No, yeah. It's my turn. Move it,"

"Move it?"

"Off," Spencer stated simply, slightly pushing at the other girl.

Ashley (like she'd actually object) happily toppled over, smiling like an idiot as Spencer mounted her.

"Can you tell me something?"

"Hmm?" Spencer mumbled out, intent on finding that one patch of skin on Ashley's neck that would make the girl burn from the inside.

"If that was your first time, at the hotel, how could you- I mean, you did everything, and _I mean everything_, perfect. I don't think I've ever come so hard,"

Spencer pulled back with a smirk, placing her hands over Ashley's chest. "I'm an apt pupil."

Ashley had to snort, even though the things Spencer was doing to her now were decidedly not funny.

Hot?

Definitely.

Humorous?

No.

"At this rate though, you'll never graduate," Ashley challenged, quirking an eyebrow.

I wonder if Spencer caught that.

"Psh," the blonde dismissed, trailing her hand lower. "I'm not a fool. I'll make it up in summer school."

**--**

Brandon, after making a sandwich, decided to go ask Ashley if she knew who opened his brand new motorcycle magazine.

He knew, even though the house was rather quiet, she was here because of her car sitting in the driveway. Or, at least, he assumed.

So, going on this assumption, he climbed the stairs two at a time, reaching her door in no time, knocking once before walking right on in.

"Hey Ash, do you know who o-Oh my God!"


	20. Homecomings

******Super Update Thursday**

**--**

**Homecomings**

**--**

"Hey Ash, do you know who o-Oh my God!"

The mega sandwich fell to the floor with a quiet thud as Brandon watched a naked Spencer hover ominously over a naked Ashley.

He screwed his eyes shut a half second before they scrambled to cover up.

"Oh my God," he repeated, this time sounding more mortified than shocked, Spencer repeating the sentiment.

"Brandon?!" Ashley darn near squealed. "Get out!"

The boy sounded miserable as he muttered out an "I can't." He sounded severely tormented; almost like he really couldn't.

Can't say I don't entirely understand. I mean, come on, how many of us would be reluctant to leave _that_ bedroom?

"Brandon!"

"Okay. I'm gone," he said quickly, longing for the sandwich but not willing to jeopardize his forced blindness. "Uh…keep the sandwich."

Ashley finally got a good look at Spencer once the door was finally closed again. The blonde clutched desperately at a sheet, holding it tightly against her chest with one hand. The other hand busied itself in her hair, fisting a handful as it sat atop her head. Her breathing was rapid and she was as pale as a ghost.

It's official.

She's panicking.

"Spencer?" Ashley called out to her timidly and the other girl winced at her name. "Are you alright?"

Slowly, those blue eyes that were glittering just moments ago looked up at her. They looked glazed over, lifeless, vacant.

Ashley's chest tightened as Spencer just climbed out of the bed, wearing one of the sheets like a toga.

"I…I have to go," she told Ashley, a little breathless. Her eyes scanned the room hurriedly but it felt like the walls were closing in on her and it was only getting worse the more she moved around.

"Go? Go where?" Ashley was on her feet in a flash, moving towards the girl who was slowly but surely cracking up. "Where do you have to go Spencer?"

"Ashley," the girl whispered, breaking down finally, succumbing to the tears.

"C'mere," Ashley said, reaching out for her anyway. She pulled her into a gentle embrace, stroking her hair lovingly. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was upsetting the girl. "It'll be okay."

"If she finds out…" Spencer said, meaning her mom. It would devastate the woman to no end, this news. That was for certain.

"Shh…she won't," Ashley assured her, hugging her tighter.

"But Brandon–"

"You let me worry about Brandon."

**--**

Speaking of the young lad, he sat in the living room staring blankly at one of the many surf boards they all had hung up on the rack.

It was the colors that had him captivated.

The oranges.

The yellows.

The blue.

Blue like eyes.

Spencer's eyes.

Spencer blue.

"Brandon," Ashley barked out, rushing into the living room.

"What?" he barked back, standing to meet her.

She shoved him back down.

"If you tell anyone, _anyone_, about what you saw between me and Spencer, I'll cut it off," she threatened, standing over him menacingly.

"Get off me Malibu Barbie. Nobody gives a crap about you and Spencer," he told her, shoving her away gently yet effectively. Upon noticing her 'oh really?' look he corrected his statement. "Well, _I _don't give a crap about you and Spencer."

"Whatever. You just make sure this, what happened here, is never spoken of again. You got me?"

"Uh," Brandon said, only just managing not to roll his eyes. "No. No I don't follow. At all."

"Cute," the brunette sneered, shoving him back down for good measure. "Just so we're clear."

"Crystal," he murmured, pulling out his cell with a smile. "Wonder what Madison is up to."

**--**

"And you _are_ keeping a close eye on her?"

The room was dark, dingy, and smelled funny. They were in a bar in one of the less desirable parts of Los Angeles. But this was part of the job, Madison knew; part of her duty. Soon, though, the years of service would pay off. "I am. As I have since you first employed my services."

"Then tell me more about this Spencer girl," the man said, his voice gruff from years of nicotine abuse.

Madison swallowed uneasily. "There's nothing to tell. She's new to the team and she's a good girl."

"So, there's nothing, shall we say, salacious going on with her and Ashley?" he asked, his upper lip curling disgustingly as he circled the girl but she showed no outward signs of discomfort.

"They're friends," Madison insisted. "Good friends."

"Watch 'em then. And let me know if anything…develops," he said, lighting up another cigarette. "It'll be too obvious if we go after the girl. But if we get someone close to her…"

She was about to give him her okay when he cell phone rang out shrilly, rolling her eyes at the interruption and then again at the source of the interruption.

"What do you want?"

"Well, hello to you too," Brandon responded, not letting the greeting bother him too much though.

"Seriously Brandon, make this quick," she told him, watching the men in the room eye her with quiet suspicion. Ricky shuffled uncomfortably as the cigarette man grew even more impatient. She seriously had some nerve answering a phone call in mid-meeting. "I'm in the middle of something."

"Fine. Guess who I just caught getting it on?" he taunted and she sighed, heavily.

"Brandon," she whined.

"Alright. Alright. Ashley and Spencer dude. They're apparently an item,"

"What?" she almost squeaked before remembering where she was and toning it down a bit.

"I know, right. Well, I just wanted to tell you that so you can get back to filing down your fangs or whatever it is you do when you're alone,"

"I don't have time to respond to that. Meet me later though, at my place,"

"Okay. Bye."

"Bye."

"You've got some nerve little girl," cigarette man said, taking a long drag from his previously lit cigarette, eyeing her as she put her phone away. "Not everyone gets away with such insolence at a mob meeting."

"Well, it was either answer him and have him not be suspicious later or let it ring and have him give me the third degree,"

"What did he want anyway?"

"Nothing," Madison quickly lied. "Apparently we have a competition tomorrow. Us girls anyway," she shrugged. "I wasn't really paying attention; the quicker the phone conversation the better."

The man eyed her, devoid of any emotion until a slow smile crept across his lips. "I love the way you think girlie. You're gonna be a good one yet."

Madison smirked, a lone thought crossing her mind. 'Oh you have no idea.'

**--**

Glen, a little wiped out, barely heard the knocking at the door.

It sounded more like light drumming…in the distance.

Pushing himself up and out of bed, the eldest of the Carlin clan shuffled sleepily out the door, and contemplated slamming it shut again as it reveled the two smiling persons he'd thought they'd left in New Jersey.

"Mom. Dad," he squeaked out, the surprise evident in his voice. "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming until the weekend."

"Your mother managed to get some more time off," Arthur said, brushing past his son and stepping inside he cramped apartment. "So, this is where you live?"

Paula, still having not spoken stepped past Glen too, wary of touching anything. He rolled his eyes a little. His mom was always a neat freak.

"Yeah, this is the pad. We're actually gonna be moving pretty soon, Spence and I, you know with her big checks and my lowly but steady income, we can at least afford a two-bedroom now," he said, only nervous near the end.

Arthur, already done with a tour of the place, smiled at him warmly, taking a seat on the small sofa. "So, where's your sister?" he asked, watching his wife intently as she moved about the small apartment, not lingering over anything longer than it took to inspect it.

"She's uh, out, with um, friends," he said, stumbling over his words miserably. Problem was he knew exactly where Spencer was and who she was with, and, more than likely, what she was doing. "She'll be home soon enough."

Paula finally stopped the silent treatment and hugged him gently, taking a moment to whisper something into his ear.

"I missed you too Mom," he said, his face contorted in confusion. "…and, in the bathroom, under the sink."

Paula took of her jacket and high-tailed it to the bathroom in search of cleaning supplies.

This apartment was in desperate need of a scrub down.

**--**

"My favorite color is yellow. Which is kind of odd for a favorite color and unlike most people I don't tend to wear my favorite color a lot, but, if I had my choice, and a Lamborghini, it'd totally be yellow," the blonde rambled, floating along with Ashley, snuggled in her arms.

The night's events, and its quickly developing revelations, were taking a toll on both girls and like the true fishes out of water they were the ocean beckoned to them and they came running. So, floating, in the ocean, at midnight seemed like the logical deterrent to any less desirable stirrings.

"That's…uh, interesting. You'll never guess mine?" Ashley told her, sounding smug.

"Blue," Spencer replied quickly, holding back a chuckle at what she imagined was the girl's crestfallen face.

Ashley brightened again though. "Yes, but what kind–"

"Spencer blue," the blonde said swiftly, cutting her off. She turned around in Ashley's embrace, treading the water gracefully. She giggled a bit at Ashley's stunned face. "You're so predictable Ashley," she muttered, planting her toes in the sand on the ocean floor before planting a kiss on Ashley's waiting lips.

Ashley kissed her back for all of two seconds before dunking her unceremoniously under the water's surface; Spencer's yelp the only thing audible before being smothered by the sound of air being expelled under water.

Ashley made sure there was a considerable distance between them when Spencer re-surfaced, hacking and spluttering quite unattractively. But it still worked.

It _was_ Spencer.

"You're gonna pay for that Davies," she muttered out, still sounding strangled.

"Ah, ah, ah," Ashley halted her, blindly untying the strings to the top of her two piece swim suit. She flung the garment in Spencer's general direction. "Still wanna hurt me?" she asked cutely, standing with her upper-half bare now.

Spencer, now ogling the brunette's bare chest, swallowed thickly, before huffing out a little laugh. "It's gonna take more than that," she said, popping and eyebrow. An obvious challenge.

Ashley upped the ante, slipping her hands underneath the surface of the black water, only being illuminated ever so often by the moon's uncovering. Gentle bubbles rose to the surface as the lower half of her bikini was tossed away, again at Spencer. Now the brunette had a sexy smirk and raised eyebrow of her own. "Now am I in your good graces?" she asked, not really expecting a verbal answer. She was thinking more along the lines of having Spencer kinda attack her in the water.

That'd be one fantasy fulfilled.

Spencer slowly waded up to her, keeping her eyes on the brunette, making sure that Ashley's own didn't wander elsewhere.

She got close, impossibly close, yet still she managed to keep their bodies away from each other. In fact, the only thing of Spencer's Ashley felt, aside from her body heat, was the gentle caress of the blonde's sweet breath as it tickled her cheek and ear. "You really think I'm that easy, huh?" she whispered, pulling back as Ashley blinked. She blinked again and finally recognized the look in Spencer's eyes.

It wasn't competitive, it wasn't playful…it was 'Ha ha. I win'.

Before she could react however Spencer took off, howling madly; Ashley's swim suit clutched firmly in her grasp. "Ha ha! Dunk me in the water will ya?!"

"_Spencer_!!!"

**--**

The bedroom door creaked open, the light from the hall spilled through the barely opened door illuminating the face of the sleeping woman.

The shadowy figure crept closer to Karen's bed, moving silently in the darkness…trailing a yellow blankie behind her.

"Aunty Kare Bear," Michelle whispered, her eyes bright with unshed tears. She tugged at the sleeping lady's arm and the woman rolled over, eyes squinting and blinking before settling on the little girl.

"Chelley?" she questioned, flipping the switch on the lamp on her nightstand. "Chelley, what's wrong sweetie?" she asked softly, fully awake. She sat up before reaching down for the girl, settling her down in her lap.

Michelle sniffled pitifully, still holding onto her blankie. "Scawy," she mumbled, her bottom lip trembling.

"Bad dream sweetie?" Karen questioned, already picking up the phone. "Want me to call Daddy?"

Michelle shook her head.

"Mommy?" Karen questioned, this time sighing as Michelle nodded. Lord knows what Ashley was up to this time of night. But one look at the little girl made the decision for her.

**--**

It didn't take Ashley too long to catch up to Spencer or undress her and then coax her back into the water for some late night loving.

Now though there were in the blissful afterglow, sitting in water that was barely waist high, Ashley being held by Spencer this time.

"Do you really think she'll react that badly?" Ashley asked her quietly, running her hands up and down Spencer's thighs languidly, as they were flanked on either side of her.

Spencer shrugged, running her fingers through Ashley's hair. "She probably will. She's like ultra-conservative and religious to boot. This goes against everything she believes in. What she's taught me to believe in. I mean," she sighed here. "She can't change me or anything. I'm an adult. It's just…she's my mom, you know? I don't want her to hate me."

"I know," Ashley whispered, squeezing her thighs gently. "I know. I understand completely. Just…whatever happens, please don't turn away from me? Okay? I don't think I could deal with that."

Spencer's fingers stilled in her hair, and she moved slightly, just so that she could look the other girl in the eye. "I won't," she told her softly. "I couldn't. Not even if I tried."

Ashley stared back at her, drowning in the ocean that was Spencer's eyes. She felt so vulnerable yet so safe. It had to be the oddest sensation in the world, but she supposed that's what happens when you're surrounded by your most favorite things. You always wonder if someday someone will take them away. That's how she felt at that moment, surrounded by at least two of her favorite things: the ocean, and Spencer. The third was her family obviously.

It was a perfect moment in time. Completely bare, both physically and emotionally, offering themselves to each other, wholly. She should tell her now. It'd be perfect to tell her now.

"Spencer," she started, watching the blonde's eyes dart to her lips before meeting her own again. "I've been meaning to tell you. I, uh, don't want to scare you…" Ashley licked her lips, which had suddenly gone dry, then swallowed against a rapidly closing throat. The nerves were finally hitting her, but she forged onward. "But, uh. What I'm trying to say is, uh…I lo-"

A shrill ringing cut into the quiet moment. Ashley's phone lit up back on shore, buried in her dry board shorts and tee.

She glanced at the pile of clothes, or glared rather. "You should get that," Spencer told her, knowing full well that it could be important.

And it was.

"Hello?" Ashley answered.

"Hi," Michelle said, her little voice cracking.

"Hi baby," Ashley gushed, picking up on the tone of her daughter's voice. She grabbed her tee and slipped it on, while Spencer got dressed beside her.

"I had bad dweam Mommy," she said, sniffling a little. "Come sweep with me?"

"Awww baby, of course. Mommy'll be right there, okay?"

"'kay, Mommy," she said, cheerful but still sad. Ah, to be three again.

**--**

"Sorry I have to bail on you," Ashley said as she put the car in park.

"Ashley," Spencer said smiling. "You're not bailing on me. You're taking care of your adorable daughter which, by the way, hot."

Ashley chuckled a little and cupped Spencer's cheek, rubbing the soft skin with her thumb. "You're all kinds of crazy Carlin."

"You're all kinds of dorky Davies," Spencer said, then dissolved into snickers. "See? I can do alliteration too."

Ashley just smiled harder, crinkling her nose. Then her face fell. "You sure you can't stay over tonight?" she asked her, pouting adorably.

"I didn't say I couldn't. It's just…we're really risking it Ash and…I'm not ready-"

"I know," Ashley cut her off quickly, smiling a little. "You're just so damn adorable Blondie. I can't be away from you for too long."

Spencer kinda melted just then.

Like, seriously, she was a puddle. Just go ahead and suck her up with a straw.

That kinda sounded dirty.

Moving on.

She leaned in and Ashley met her halfway, their lips coming to mingle for a brief while. "Breakfast tomorrow?" Spencer asked, once they moved away from each other. Well, barely. They kinda just stayed where they were only the kissing had stopped.

"You cooking?"

"If you want," Spencer shrugged.

"I'll pass then," Ashley joked, earning a playful shove and reproachful look.

"Aww, baby you know I'm playing. I'll eat your fried worms and maggot eggs any day,"

Spencer's gag was authentic. "Oh my God. I'm sleeping with a ten-year-old," she cried out.

"Cradle-robber,"

"Shut up,"

"Make me,"

Spencer groaned, knowing this could go on forever if she allowed, and while part of her didn't mind, the other, more responsible part remembered the child that was in dire need of her mother. "Michelle needs you Ashley," she said sweetly, gently reminding the girl. She didn't want Ashley to think she was insinuating that she'd forgotten about her own daughter.

"I know," Ashley sighed, finally moving away and unlocking the doors. "I'll call you later."

"Do that," Spencer replied smugly, hopping out of the vehicle.

"I will," Ashley called out, watching her walk up the walkway.

"I know," Spencer replied, turning around briefly before resuming her walking.

"You love it," the brunette said, just before she reached the door.

"You wouldn't know," the blonde shot back, not turning around this time, her hand on the door handle.

"You do though," Ashley said, her voice devoid of any teasing undertones.

Spencer turned, back pressed against the door as she smiled an alluring smile at Ashley, her blue eyes twinkling in the moonlight. "I do," she said, just as softly as Ashley had. With one last smile she was gone, opening and closing the door quickly behind her.

Ashley smiled to herself before driving off to Karen's, her heart and stomach a flurry of activity.

Yeah, she definitely loved this girl.

**--**

Spencer closed the door behind her, sighing blissfully. Even after her minor freak-out and near fall out, she and Ashley still managed to have the most perfect day and evening. She was even fairly certain that Ashley was gonna tell her she loved her.

Okay, almost certain.

Okay, so she didn't really believe that at all, but she thought it…once.

Anyway, after all of that, and all the sex, she was pretty exhausted, compound that with the fact that Glen was in la-la-land, (the real la-la-land; complete with snores), Spencer was a half-step away from falling out.

She got cleaned up pretty quickly, and barely registered the fact that the bathroom sink was oddly devoid of any dried up toothpaste or shaved hairs.

Going into the lone bedroom, she slipped on some pajamas and shuffled tiredly over to her bed and was about to climb in when her bedside lamp was clicked on.

"Spence?" the familiar, yet groggy voice rasped out. "That you?"

Spencer blinked rapidly, the sudden intrusion of light nearly blinding her. "Mom?"

"Hey!" Arthur said, much too loudly for her liking, and the time of night. He scrambled out of bed, hugging the young girl tightly. "Spencie's home!"

**--**

Trent, flanked on either side by men dressed in black suits sporting pistols, shades, and communication devices, waited impatiently as the large metal garage door opened slowly.

He took a timid step forward as he saw two pairs of legs standing directly on the other side of the door, slowly being revealed. However, once the door was completely up, he couldn't move.

Slowly the man and the woman approached him; her eyes pouring tears; his on the verge of it.

Trent closed the short distance thereafter, hugging them both vigorously. "I can't believe it," he whispered, rocking them gently back and forth.

After some time, he pulled away, just to get a better glimpse at them both. They looked like the same immaculate couple he'd been robbed of four years ago, a little grayer, maybe a little thin, but still flawlessly remarkable.

Trent hugged his brother again, the older man chuckling earnestly, reveling in the embrace. Katherine a.k.a. Christine stood by, watching the scene unfold happily. She didn't think it'd ever be possible again.

"So, what do I call you?" Trent asked, finally pulling away again. "Anthony or Raife?"

Anthony a.k.a. Raife smiled widely at the younger man. "Call me brother."


	21. L O V E That Spells Love

******A/N: Hey guys, remember feedback = love and don't forget to pick out your favorite Fifty First Times one shots and send them to me via review, message, whatever. I don't want to leave anybody out.**

--

**-Trent's POV-**

Okay, so obviously they didn't die.

I say obviously because I'm sitting right here with them, drinking coffee in what has to be the most secured place in the world.

God couldn't get in here.

At least I don't think so.

"So…" Raife starts. "We know you have questions."

Hell yeah. I do.

First and foremost, if they didn't die in that car crash, then who did?

And why have they gone so long without letting me know?

I mean, I am his kid brother after all.

"The car crash," I say, trying to keep my emotions in check. This was all sprung on me just last week so excuse me if it's taking some time to adjust. And even then, the FBI or whoever the hell government organization only told me that the Gallos had a name, or several to be exact: Ashley, Karen, Adam, and Kyla. They never mentioned anything about my brother or sister-in-law.

"It was all planned. The feds figured the only way to squash all of the drama with the mob bosses was to give them what they wanted and they wanted me dead," Raife tells me. I swallow. "The accident, everything that followed, was all a conspiracy. I had to protect my family, Trent," he tells me, obviously noticing the contempt in my eyes. "You couldn't be told."

I understand him. I really do. But I might as well have been dead when I heard that he'd died. When they told me they were so cold and calculated, detached. "He probably died on impact. Her as well. There weren't any bodies recovered at the site. We suspect they burned in the fire." The bastards.

The only thing that kept me going was that I had to take care of our parents…and the children. Gasp. The children?!

"What about the kids?" I ask them, nearly leaping out of my seat. It would delight them to no end I'm sure. I've never felt worse in my life than when I had to comfort them in the hospital. Not being able to answer their only question: why?

"You can't say anything to them Trent. And that is of great importance," he tells me firmly.

"Until all of this is resolved," Christine adds, swallowing thickly. "They can't know about us. It's too risky. We've been through too much to have something happen now."

"But if Gallo knows the kids are yours why does it even matter?"

"He still thinks we're dead Trent and that's the only thing keeping him from going after the children. This is Gallo Jr. we're dealing with now. His dad, as ruthless as he was, wasn't gutsy enough to organize any vengeance on his own. He was the muscle not the brain. This kid wants blood, and he thinks he's got it with me and Christine. But he's itching for more. The sick son of a bitch won't rest until he harms my family more," Raife roars, slamming his fist onto the solid oak table. "I won't let that happen. That's not _going_ to happen."

I've never seen him look so determined before.

I actually believe him.

**--**

Michelle giggled as Ashley playfully tousled her wet hair.

"Where are we going t'day Mommy?" she asked the brunette as she laid out the little girl's clothes on her bed.

"Well Mommy has a competition today," Ashley answered, pulling on the little girl's undies…Dora the Explorer of course. "But first, we…are gonna go see Spencer."

"Aww, yay Mommy!" the girl replied happily, stopping for a moment as Ashley looped the t-shirt over her head. "I likes Penser Mommy," she squealed, clapping her hands together.

"Me too," Ashley said, smiling adorably at her little girl as she pulled on her shorts. "So, we're gonna go have breakies at her house. Okay?"

"'kay Mommy. Do Penser gots French toastie sticks?" Michelle asked, looking up at her mother through strands of dark wet hair.

Ashley had to chuckle, both at the question and the way her little girl looked. "First. It's does and have baby, okay?" she said, careful to punctuate her corrections with a little kiss, one to either cheek. "Now, about those French toastie sticks, I'm not sure. We'll have to call and find out."

Ashley kissed the smiling girl on the nose one time, making her giggle before retrieving her cell from her back pocket. She didn't have to dial though as it seemed she and Spencer were on the same wavelength.

She grinned, stepping away from the Michelle as the girl started playing with her Barbies. It was serious stuff. She was re-enacting Degrassi so one of the dolls had Chlamydia and the other was 4 months pregnant and suicidal.

Just kidding.

"Hello beautiful," she purred into the receiver, her face practically split in half with her grin.

"Hi," Spencer said and nothing more, her tone less than inviting. Something Ashley picked up on immediately.

"What's wrong?" she asked, seriously concerned.

"I…um. I'm not gonna be able to do breakfast this morning," Spencer rushed to say, holding her breath immediately afterward.

"Oh," Ashley said, the dejection in her voice obvious. "Why?" she asked tentatively, fearing the worst. And her worsts tended to be pretty scary.

Spencer, not really expecting that question, sputtered for a moment. "I've um…something's come up and I…I can't do it Ashley. Not today. I'll see you at the competition later though."

Ashley, trying to shake off the crappy feeling, at least for appearances, chuckled just a bit. "You'd better. Or else your ass is off the team."

"Bad word Mommy," Michelle scolded, turning her attention from her imaginative play at the fumbled expletive.

Spencer chuckled as Ashley went to apologize. "Sorry Chelle. Mommy's sorry."

"Tell Michelle I'll see her later too, okay?"

"I will,"

There was a prolonged silence stretched out over the phone and though neither could see it, they were sure they were smiling stupidly.

"You gonna hang up Blondie?"

"Are you?"

"I was waiting for you,"

"Well, I was waiting for you,"

"Same time?"

"Okay,"

"On three. One. Two. Three," Ashley pressed the phone to her ear and listened intently, waiting for a click and dial tone that never came. "You didn't hang up?!"

"Neither did you!" the blonde on the other line squealed, giggling a little.

"Oh my God. _Goodbye_ Carlin. God, you never get off of the phone," Ashley said, exaggeratingly (and playfully) exasperated.

"Shut up Davies," Spencer chuckled. "Bye."

"Well, Pumpkin. It looks like it's just you and me for breakfast," Ashley informed her, closing up her cell.

"Aww," Michelle pouted. "No Penser."

"Nope. _Penser's_ busy," Ashley smiled, brushing the girl's bangs out of her face.

"It's okay Mommy," the small girl confirmed, taking her mother's hand and dragging her out of the bedroom. "I likes you too. _And_ French toastie sticks."

**--**

"You should've called me," Spencer hissed, sitting at the sofa while her mother and father prepared breakfast in their kitchen

"I did," Glen hissed back. "Well, I tried. But, surprise, surprise, someone's phone was off. Wonder why that was huh?"

"You still should've warned me or something. I mean, there I was about to practically jump on top of my mom,"

"Look at it this way," Glen whispered, just before Arthur was about to call them to eat. "At least it wasn't Dad."

"Kids," Arthur said, clasping his hands together. "Breakfast is served."

**--**

**A few minutes later…**

Breakfast. With the folks. Who hated her career choice.

Anybody else see something wrong with that?

Spencer and Glen both filed into the…well they actually just moved to the little folding/dining table and fell right into the same routine, holding hands while Paula said grace.

It was an all too familiar scene and one that had taken place countless times but this time was a little different.

Tense.

Still, they ate quietly, only a few words shared. Something along the lines of "Pass the butter." And "is there cheese in this?"

Then Spencer, who'd been silently seething the entire time finally let loose. But she did so in a very Spencer way.

"What are you doing here?" she asked Paula, finally just giving up on trying to guess herself. Her fork and knife fell against her plate with a clatter as her eyes settled on her mother.

Angry eyes.

"And don't tell me you just wanted to see us, because we've been out here for months and I haven't talked to you since we moved," she continued, eyes solely on Paula.

It definitely wasn't Arthur she had beef with.

Paula, a little thrown off at her daughter's willingness to become so non-cordial so early, spoke freely.

"We're getting a divorce."

**--**

Karen's eyes were unwittingly drawn to her sister as Ashley carried Michelle down the stairs, piggy-back style.

"Hey Chelley," she said, turning over the pancakes. "Did you have a nice sleep?"

Michelle nodded as Ashley sat her in her booster's seat. "Mommy chased all the monsters bye-bye."

"She did?" Karen asked excitedly, setting down a little plate of French toast sticks in front of the girl.

"Mmm hmm," Michelle nodded again, munching on the breakfast food. "Then Mommy stayed in the bed with me all night. Right Mommy?" Michelle inquired, her freshly done curly pigtails swinging with her animated speech.

"That's right Pumpkin," Ashley said lightly, wiping some syrup off of the girl's chin.

"What about you?" Karen said, handing a plate full of food to Ashley. "You sleep okay?"

"Sure," Ashley said, a little surprised Karen was even asking. Not about the food though, regardless of how crazy things could get between them Karen would always cook for her "almost littlest" sister.

Karen sat back against the stove for a moment, regarding the other girl quietly. "Look, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop or anything, but, well I was changing the sheets in one of the guestrooms, and uh…"

"Spit it out Kare,"

"Are you and Spencer involved?"

Ashley felt her ears burn and she turned to look down at her food, trying to conceal her widening smile.

"Never mind," Karen muttered, turning back to the stove. "I've got my answer."

Ashley watched Karen's back, her features darkening as the woman continued to ignore her, stirring the pancake batter faster and faster.

"I don't know when you're gonna stop with these little trysts, Ashley,"

"Kare– "

"I mean, I get it. You like girls, fine. But this revolving door of women you have is getting ridiculous,"

"Karen–"

"And let's not forget about C-H-E-L-L-E. What about her, huh? I know you probably don't know anything about this but do you think it's easy for her to get so attached to these people and then have them vanish when her mom gets bored with them?"

"_Karen_,"

"What?" Karen said, spinning around, crossing her arms. The mixing spoon, still in her hand, was dripping pancake mix all over the floor.

Michelle tittered at the dot of flour resting just on her aunt's nose.

Ashley, on the other hand, tried to keep a straight face. "It's different this time Kare."

"How Ash? How is this different?"

Ashley shrugged. "I'm in love."

"L-O-V-E," Michelle spelled, cracking up immediately after. "That spells love."

**--**

"A divorce?"

"Now Spencer, your mother and I have talked about this and now that you kids are all grown up we figured it'd be easier,"

"A divorce?"

"We've tried Spencer," Paula said, getting a little teary-eyed. "But we just can't work through our issues."

"I can't believe you're getting a divorce," Spencer whispered, seriously in shock.

Glen, who'd warmed up to the idea very nicely, merely shrugged and continued finishing off everyone's pancakes.

"I can," he muttered, through a full mouth.

"Glen?!" his mom and dad said at the same time.

"What?"

"Not with your mouth full," they both scolded.

"See? How can you get a divorce? Do you see how freakily synchronized you are?"

"Spencer," Arthur started. "Your mother and I like each other. We get along and I love her. But…we're not…in love. And I know that that might not make sense to you–"

"No," Spencer interrupted softly. "I understand." And she did. The myriad of ex-boyfriends she "loved" attested to that. She loved them sure. But she wasn't in love with them.

She was in love with someone else.

"We're still a family though Spencer," Paula said, wanting to get that point across. "We might not always…agree with each other's actions or decisions but we're still family. We'll always love one another."

"Yeah, you're right mom," Spencer said absently, her mind a little more than occupied. "Can you excuse me for a moment?"

"Uh, sure," Arthur said, raising his eyebrows at his wife in question to which the older woman only shrugged, her face belying her confusion as well.

Spencer bee-lined for the bathroom, turning on the faucet to hopefully drown out her voice, dialing the number she'd learned by heart the moment she'd gotten it.

"Hello," Ashley picked up on the second ring, sounding breathless. She suspected that was because of a tickle war as Michelle's squealing giggles were just dying out. That girl was all kinds of cute.

"Hello? Spence, are you there?"

Oh right. She'd called it was time to speak now. Now or never.

"I love you," Spencer said, clearly enunciating the words and saying them as if she'd said them over and over again; which, in actuality, she had. In every action and every word she'd ever spoken to the brunette she'd told her she loved her. It just took her a while to getting around to actually saying those words.

"I mean, I'm actually very much in love with you," Spencer continued shyly, holding her breath as she listened intently to Ashley's end of the line.

Ashley, sitting on her daughter's Sesame Street bed, was speechless.

That was pretty much all there was to that.

"I know it's kind of sudden and I really didn't want to do this over the phone, but this morning and after what just happened, I really…I needed to let you know. But, no pressure to say it back or anything,"

Spencer was rambling and usually when she rambled Ashley'd cut her off with a kiss. One that said I love you. Guess she could use her verbal skills this time…for once.

"I love you too. God, Spencer I'm so in love with you it's scary. I, like, want to be around you all the time," Ashley said.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I was so scared to tell you. I, uh, I thought you didn't feel the same,"

"You thought I didn't feel the same? I was freaking out over here thinking you'd run from the suddenly gay girl,"

"I'd never," Ashley told her sincerely and she could feel Spencer smiling through the phone.

"I believe you," Spencer said.

"God, I really need to see you," Ashley said, completely serious.

"How soon can you be at the beach?"

"Sooner than you,"

"Psh. You wish Davies,"

"Wanna bet Carlin?" Ashley said, a sly grin spreading across her face.

"You have nothing I want," the blonde replied smugly.

"I'm sure I could think of something," Ashley drawled then thwarted a little as Michelle crashed into her lap.

"Is that Penser Mommy?"

"Yeah, why'd you ask that baby?"

"You talky funny,"

Spencer couldn't control her snickers on the other end of the phone and Ashley merely groaned.

"Shut up Blondie and meet me at the tent,"

"Aye Aye Ashley." And with that, the blonde was gone.

**--**

Spencer, family in tow, walked up to the KaTo tent, catching onto the tail end of a ridiculous Aiden/Kyla argument.

"I don't like pickles on it Kyla. They smell all pickle-y,"

"Well, make your own damn sandwich next time, you big baby,"

"I will,"

"Fine,"

Kyla almost walked directly into Spencer in an attempt to storm off.

"Uh, hey," Spencer offered timidly.

"Hey Spencer," she said, rolling her eyes at the now sulking in a beach chair Aiden.

"Bad time?" she asked, wondering if maybe she should walk the Carlins around for a bit before setting them up in the tent.

"Course not. Who's this you got witcha?" the bubbly brunette asked, peering through squinting eyes up at the much taller people accompanying Spencer and her brother.

"These are my parents," Spencer announced, rather cautiously. "This is my dad, Arthur Carlin, and this is my mom, Paula."

"Nice to meet you both," she said, being very polite, shaking hands and everything. The look she shared with Spencer speaking volumes. "I didn't know you lived in LA."

"We don't," Arthur said, glad to talk. "We're just visiting. We're so proud of little Spencie here," he added, hugging the girl closer to him with one arm.

"Dad," the other girl whined, blushing slightly, especially when Aiden snorted.

"Spencie? You serious?" he laughed, shaking his head. "That's classic."

"Shut up moron," Kyla scolded, lightly, chuckling a bit herself. "We're pretty proud of Spencer too. She's extremely talented and really awesome," Kyla continued to gush, knowing about the whole back story between Spencer and her parents.

"Yeah, Spencie's the greatest," Aiden added, wrapping his arms around her from behind.

"Excuse me," Paula interrupted, eyeing Kyla oddly. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Uh…not that I'm aware of," Kyla responded, a little disconcerted.

"You sure?"

"Relax Mom," Glen said, downing about half a bottle of Gatorade before speaking again. "You probably recognize her from the myriad of posters Spencer has on her walls." He stuck his tongue out at Spencer before catching something else out of his peripherals. He nodded his head in its direction. "I know you gotta recognize that one."

Everyone turned slightly to catch sight of Ashley, fresh out of the water, board tucked carefully under her right arm. Her board shorts hung low on her hips, since they were wet, and her barely there bikini top might as well have not been there. Her hair, tousled by the water, was being blown slightly to one side by the slight breeze, and for once, her eyes weren't hidden by those damn glasses. They just glinted like pools of rich honey in the sunlight.

But while everyone's eyes were on her, she only had eyes for Spencer, evident by her persistent stare and radiant smile that grew wider with each encroaching step.

"Hey," Ashley said softly, her eyes never having left Spencer.

"Hey," Spencer echoed, pretty much forgetting her parents were there…or what the hell a parent was.

Glen, however, did not.

"Hey Ash," he said loudly, obnoxiously breaking up their little staring contest. "It's time to meet the parents."

**--**

**Announcer Number One:** Team KaTo has really figured out their rotations of late and it's given them quite an advantage in terms of points.

**Announcer Number Two:** Indeed, the one-two tandem of Spencer Carlin and Ashley Davies is really giving opponents fits. When you add Duarte's steady numbers and the overall improvement of Kyla Davies' performance, the Team KaTo's women team is quite a force to be reckoned with.

--

Spencer and Ashley, sat slightly separated from the rest of them team, off to one corner. Spencer was applying some more sun-tan lotion when she heard the brunette sigh, rather loudly.

"What's wrong?"

"I should be doing that," Ashley said, her eyes still strained on the water.

"Doing what?" Spencer asked distractedly, still more focused on the lotion.

"Putting that lotion on you," Ashley said, grinning. She grinned even harder when Spencer blushed.

"I know. And don't think I don't want you to. But my mom and dad, right over there," Spencer pointed, and then gestured around. "And we're not exactly secluded and–"

"I know, I know," Ashley sighed. "We're supposed to be staying under the radar. Well, could you at least try to look less hot?"

Spencer raised an eyebrow, an action even visible behind her mirrored glasses. "You want me to look less hot? Look at you."

Ashley did. "What?"

"What? _What?_ Could you _be_ wearing any less clothes?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Chandler. I'll make sure to bring my sweats next time," Ashley joked, laughing along with Spencer whose laughter quickly subsided as she not so discreetly checked Ashley out. "It's okay if you want me Spencer. Just try not to be so obvious about it."

"Huh?"

"That's what I thought. Score one for the vet," Ashley smirked, pushing herself of the block. "I'm up, Blondie," she said, standing up and wrapping an arm around her board. She leaned back down to Spencer, her mouth right next to her ear. "I love you," she whispered, pulling back slowly, neither girl displaying on the outside what was really going on on the inside.

Butterflies.

"You too," Spencer said, somehow maintaining her cool.

She shot a look over to her parents, who, much to her surprise, looked to be enjoying themselves. That could be because of Michelle though. That girl could melt some hearts.

**--**

Michelle clapped her hands as Arthur once again pulled the quarter out of thin air.

He handed her the silver coin and she merely told him to do it again.

She had almost five dollars in quarters now.

"I think that's enough sweetie," Karen interjected softly. "I'm sure Mr. Carlin wants to watch the competition."

Arthur smiled gratefully but the little girl pouted.

"Uh oh," Glen said, pouting too. "What's the matter gorgeous? You want some ice cream?"

Michelle's eyes lit up and she nodded eagerly. "Gimme."

"Michelle," Karen lightly admonished.

"Yes, pwease," Michelle amended and Glen winked at her.

"One chocol–" Michelle frowned. "Vanil–" Pout this time. "Strawberry?" Michelle nodded. "Okay, one strawberry ice cream cone coming right up," Glen said, getting up to retrieve the frozen treat. "You'd better not disappear on me gorgeous," he said, turning around suddenly to wink again. She winked back.

Okay, so it wasn't really a wink. She tried but she just ended up blinking her eyes. It was cute.

Glen climbed the stairs and was almost annihilated by some wide load stomping down the stairs. The collision sent him down a row where he fell into the lap of some guy with binoculars.

"Watch it moron," the guy growled as Glen scrambled away, a little more than embarrassed.

"Sorry," he mumbled, getting to his feet and the guy only growled, turning his attention back to the competition. "Jeez," Glen muttered, continuing to ascend the stairs to go to the refreshments stand.

Louis Gallo Junior readjusted his binoculars so that the lens was focused sharply.

There they all were; All of the Davies, just ripe for the picking...off. He'd have to be cautious though, and discreet. No one would take too kindly to a dead celebrity. The pursuit would be ruthless.

Still nothing would give him greater pleasure than to ruin that family, just like they ruined his.

_Four years ago…_

_A buzzer sounded and Louis Gallo Jr., then 16, heard chains scrape against a cold cement floor as he waited on the other side of the glass window – the glass window that distinguished who was really living and who was left to rot._

_His father, "The Strangler" himself, was forcibly placed into the chair opposite him, his cold eyes softening a bit as he took in the appearance of his only child._

"_Son," the older man said into the two way phone, his voice breaking just a little before he checked it. "What are you doing here? I thought I told ya' never to come see me here?"_

"_I had to Pop. I had to,"_

"_I didn't want you to see me like this, like some…caged animal,"_

"_You're not an animal. You're a man Pop–"_

"_I know what I am!" Gallo Sr. roared, calming himself immediately after. "I know what I am," he said, much softer this time._

"_We know who did it Pop. We know who the rat is. Fredo and me, we're gonna take care of 'em,"_

"_Nah, you ain't gonna do nothin'," Gallo said, making his voice strong. "Nothing you hear me."_

"_But Po –"_

"_Your mother is all alone right now. Now, I need someone to take care of her. How are you gonna do that if you're locked in here with me, huh? You tell me that,"_

_Gallo Junior merely hung his head._

"_You promise me. I want you to promise me Junior. You don't do nothing as long as your mother is still breathing, you hear me?"_

"_I hear ya' Pop,"_

"_Promise me," Gallo Sr. implored._

"_I promise," Gallo Jr. said, looking into his father's eyes._

"_That's my boy," the "Strangler" said, just as the loud buzzer went off again. "I'll be seeing you," he told him, before he was dragged away again, the sound of the chains scraping across the floor echoing throughout that room._

"_I love ya' Pop," Gallo Junior whispered into the now non-occupied, receiver._

That was the last time Louis Gallo Junior saw his father.

The man committed suicide two days later.

His mother passed away just a month ago.

Gallo Junior now considered himself a man with nothing to live for.

And there was nothing more dangerous than that.


	22. Secrets

_It's a dark alleyway; a figure looms in the shadows. The only light visible is the dim yellowish glow from the overworked street light and the small red flame at the tip of her cigarette. The girl puts it up to her lips for one last drag before tossing it to the ground, stomping it out with her foot._

_A street cab pulls up at the edge of the alleyway and a blonde woman jumps out, the collar on her trench coat upturned against the cool autumn night air. She briskly walks down the alley hands in her pocket, submerging in the shadows, her hurried steps slowing with trepidation as the sound of her shoes echoing against the pavement rings out loudly in her ears. For a moment, she's worried that she might have made a mistake, then– _

_"You're late," the first girl says, stepping into the light, her face eerily hidden in the shadow cast by her fedora._

_"I couldn't get away," the woman admitted with a shrug. "There's some crazy girl following me asking me about surfboards."_

_"Do you have it?" she asked, never one for small talk. _

_The second woman looks around stealthily, apprehensive as ever. This was top secret information. She took the file out of her pocket, turning it over in her hands a few times. "Whatever happens...you didn't get this from me," she said, handing it over, turning on her heel without uttering another word. _

That was about two years ago, when Madison first got her assignment. Now she was standing in a different alleyway and for a much different reason. The information she was about to receive could crack this thing wide-open. And this Louis Gallo issue could be resolved once and for all, free of incident.

The crack of friggin' dawn, no wait it was right before dawn, well it was dark as hell anyway, and it found Madison and Ricky huddled inside a dark alley.

"These drop-offs are getting too dangerous," she said, eyeing the area suspiciously. "I mean, Gallo could just have one of his goons follow us and then there's always the risk of the average petty criminal," she continued. It was pointless for her to ramble on aimlessly anyway. Ricky was deaf and there was no way he could see her lips move in this lig–

"I know," Ricky said, clearly, no squeak. How odd? "I've been trying to find a better way to trade intelligence, but we're in too deep now. Gallo's wire-tapped our phones and he's got a spy on our email."

"He may look it," Madison said, shivering as a somewhat icy breeze blew through the darkened alleyway. "But that Gallo bastard is not an idiot."

An unmarked car pulled to the front of the alley and a lone figure emerged, limping slightly. He carried with him an envelope, thin yet worn, haggard.

"Agent M, Agent R," the man addressed the pair.

"Agent K," they responded simultaneously.

"This," the man said, his voice sharp, so sharp it almost had a point. "…is highly sensitive information. This stays with you and you alone. After its contents are revealed to you, it must be destroyed. Is that understood?"

A firm nod from both agents stood for their silent confirmation.

"And I trust that you understand that this information is to remain confidential?"

Uh, duh, dude.

Another nod, even as Madison struggled to restrain her eye roll.

"Good," Agent K said, hobbling back away. "You didn't get it from me."

Ricky and Madison waited a few seconds before he moved to open the letter.

"No, wait. Not here,"

"Okay, then. Meet me at the secret place later?"

"Yeah," she agreed and they parted ways.

--

Brandon, arms full of groceries, was waking back to his and Tasha's apartment when he was bombarded by a paparazzo.

"Hey, aren't you Brandon Harper?" the man said, snapping yet another picture. *Flash* "Of Team Kato?"

"Nah, man. You've got me confused with somebody else," Brandon said, about two seconds away from being permanently blinded.

"Nah, I'd know you anywhere. You're big around these parts," the man said, still snapping away.

"Dude, I'm not him, so you're really just wasting your film,"

"Nah, you're him. I'm gonna be fucking rich," the guy said, finishing the roll before finally stalking away.

"Yeah, yeah," Brandon muttered, walking away grumbling. He really hated those things but didn't want to be caged in either. However, maybe today might have been a good day to stay locked away as he was about to find out.

"Get him," he heard someone rush out before he was grabbed from all sides, a hand slipping over his mouth before a bag was being placed over his head. That's the last thing he remembered before slipping off into unconsciousness.

--

"Mmm," Ashley mumbled, smiling against the lips pressed against hers. Her eyes fluttered open to look into the blue ones staring down at her. "I could wake up like this every morning," she said, tracing a lone finger down Spencer's back as the other girl laid atop her. hands trapped between their bodies.

Spencer gave her a lopsided smile, leaning down to kiss her again. "I love you," she whispered, pulling back devastatingly slow.

"I love _you_," Ashley replied, her fingers now massaging the soft skin of Spencer's lower back.

Spencer freed one of her hands and traced the other girl's eyebrow, deep in thought. She opened her mouth to speak but then closed it again, not finding her voice.

"What?" Ashley asked patiently, taking Spencer's wandering hand and pressing it to her lips, kissing every fingertip.

"Do you think, I mean. How on earth are we gonna keep this thing hidden?"

"This thing?" Ashley asked, a little harshly.

"You know what I mean. Us," Spencer sighed, her stomach tightening. "I can barely keep my hands off you sometimes," she muttered, a little eye roll the punctuation.

"That's because I'm hot,"

Spencer groaned and tried to roll off of and away from Ashley but the brunette steadfastly held her in place. "Oh, come on. I'm just kidding. You left that door wide open. And, it's not like it's entirely one-sided." Ashley said, leaning up slightly to press her lips to the base of Spencer's throat, before whispering, "I want you just as bad Spence."

Spencer smiled languidly, knowing that this couldn't go anywhere at the moment but appreciating the effort nonetheless. She raked her fingers through Ashley's messy yet perfect locks. "You are just so…perfect."

Ashley wanted to say something back but found that she couldn't. So, instead, she pulled Spencer down to her, intent on making her tremble inside and out. But Spencer had other plans.

"Okay, no, we're not doing this. Get up," she said, breaking away from Ashley.

"Wha?" Ashley asked, a little dazed and a little confused.

"C'mon," Spencer said, still completely naked except for panties as she traipsed around what she now knew was Ashley's bedroom. "I'm making you and Michelle breakfast."

Ashley's heart gave a little pause before fluttering wildly. She didn't think she could love the blonde who was now slipping on a set of her pajamas more if she tried.

"If you can make French toast sticks she'll love you," Ashley whispered, still enraptured.

Spencer gave her a teasing look. "What else would you even _eat_ for breakfast?"

--

"Hey buddy," Glen said, sidling up next to Kyla as she stood in line at the diner. "Here by your lonesome?"

"No," she grinned, bumping him with her shoulder. "What are you doing here? And with no other Carlins in sight?" she continued, noting that he was, in fact, alone.

"Just came to give you an update,"

"An update,"

"They've exchanged 'I love yous'," Glen said, his eyes twinkling.

"Oh, yay," Kyla said, clasping her hands together. "Nobody told me."

"I guess Spencer loves me more than Ashley loves you," Glen said as Kyla retrieved her order.

"I wish they would just come out with it already," Kyla grumbled. "I'm tired of sneaking around to talk about them."

"Well, there are other topics of conversation," Glen offered.

"Trust me. Nothing takes the cake like my sister being in love," Kyla deadpanned.

"So how come they're still keeping it mum…like, around us?" the guy asked, sitting down at a table with her.

"I'm not sure exactly, enough of us know now. Management knows. I think Tasha's the only one who's still out of the loop,"

"And Aiden," Glen rightly pointed out and she stiffened. "What?"

"He thinks I'm cheating on him," she said and Glen burst out laughing.

"What?!" he asked incredulous, getting too loud as he always had a tendency to do. "What is he, like, retarded (read: cognitively delayed)?"

"No, he's just a super sweet guy who totally is annoyed that his girlfriend keeps getting secret calls from her sister's girlfriend's brother," Kyla said sadly and a little too loudly.

"Hey, shh," Glen hissed, glancing around. "Someone could be listening."

Kyla sighed. Like they'd even get that. "Yeah."

"Hey." Glen, ever the sensitive one, put hand on her arm. "Soon, alright?" he said, smiling a smile not of his usual repertoire. It didn't look smarmy at all.

"Okay," Kyla agreed, giving him her best smile.

--

"Morning Penser," Michelle said, running down the rest of the stairs as quickly as her little legs would allow. She launched herself at the girl's knees, squeezing them senseless. "I miss you," the little girl squealed, holding her tighter.

Spencer bent down to scoop her up, pressing a quick kiss into a chubby cheek. "I missed you too Chelle. And guess what we're eating for breakfast?"

"What?" Michelle asked, her face alit in child's anticipation.

"French toastie sticks," Spencer said excitedly, chuckling when the little girl's eyes almost popped out of her head.

"Thank you Penser," she said, hugging the girl again, this time about the neck. Spencer caught Ashley's gaze after a while and almost balked at its intensity. "What?" she asked.

"I…nothing. You…she likes you a lot," Ashley finally spit out, walking over to the duo. "She's crazy about you Penser."

"And I'm crazy about Michelle," Spencer said, giving the girl an Eskimo kiss. "Now, let's see about those toastie sticks."

"Yay!" Michelle said.

Ashley's heart repeated the sentiment.

--

Tasha walked into a rather empty training room. It's only occupants being Aiden and Michelle.

"Hey Mimi," she said, eyes lighting up when the little girl saw her.

"Tasha," Michelle said, jumping up from her position of "spotting" her daddy. She ran over to the taller girl, a little thwarted about what to do with the crutches. "Tasha bwoken."

"Not broken, sweetie," she said, laying a crutch down and kneeling on her good leg. "Just a little hurt," she corrected, brushing her fingers against the now pouting girl's cheek.

"Do you needs a band-aid? I gots Ariel ones," Michelle asked.

"Nope, I gots a good one already," she said, crutching behind the little girl as they walked back over to Aiden. "Hey Aide," she said, shaking her head at the cuteness of the little brunette.

"Hey," he said, sitting up and toweling off slightly. "What's up?"

"I was actually looking for my brother, but I guess it's only you and Michelle right?"

"And Ashley and Spencer," he corrected, letting Michelle take the towel from him to do the drying herself. "But they said something about a shower," he continued, his face a little puzzled. "I can't reach Brando either though. I think his cell's off."

"I know and it's strange. I can't get him or Madison…or Ricky, but he doesn't really belong in that category," Tasha said. She dismissed the coincidence of them being missing all at once quickly. I mean, it was only coincidence. "Anyway, what's going on? You're never training this late," she asked, actually concerned.

Aiden sighed, letting the little girl sit in his lap as he looked up at the still standing Tasha. "I dunno Tash; things have been a little off lately. With Kyla, with surfing, it just feels…"

"Odd," Tasha finished for him and he nodded. "I get what you're saying. I feel like we're right on the cusp of something – something big. And I have this anxiousness about me that's worried but at the same time you just wish it would hurry up so you could get it over with."

"Yeah," he said, absently stroking Michelle's hair as she drew some random shapes on a sketch pad.

"I'm gonna go and get something from the vends before I head out. You know, big day tomorrow and everything,"

"Oh yeah, the mixer," Aiden muttered, rolling his eyes. "That's gonna be very interesting. Hey, how'd you get here anyway?"

"Well my mom and dad decided one night–"

"To the gym Tasha," he interrupted, chuckling. "Who drove you?"

"I crutched," she answered with a shrug.

"From your place?"

She shrugged again.

"Oh no, no. Go get your stuff. I'm driving you home," he said, his protective side kicking in.

Wherever the hell Brandon was, he was getting an ass kicking when he showed up.

Tasha crutched out of the workout room and headed for the vending machines when a series of sounds stopped her.

A series of moans to be exact.

She pushed open the closet door, glimpsing down at the now not-so-secret lovers. "You have got to be kidding me," she said, her voice more than sardonic.

Ashley tried to cover up as much as she could, but the position she was in pretty much prevented her from doing that. Spencer, for her part, was frozen in place, her face going pale and then flashing hot.

White hot.

Like coals.

"Could you…um…close?" The door was shut without another word.

"And–" Ashley started.

"I won't tell anybody!" they heard Tasha's voice call out, muffled by the door and distance.

Ashley turned to face the still gob-smacked Spencer. "Oops."

The single word was all it took for the blonde to unfreeze herself and she collapsed into giggles. "We so suck at anything covert," she said, looking up at Ashley, who was sitting on a crate, her pants and underwear pooling around her ankles. "Well, you do."

"Hey," Ashley squealed in mock offense. "I can't help it. You did the tongue swirly thing."

"Oh yeah," Spencer deadpanned, bringing her face down again. "I know how much you love that."

"Okay, yeah, not again. Get up," Ashley said, sitting up and motioning for Spencer to rise.

"Are you serious?" Spencer said, looking at the other girl as if she'd grown another (albeit cute) head. "You want to go…now?"

"Uh yeah," Ashley said, turning around before she pulled up her undies all the way. "I have crate ass."

And, sure enough, Ashley's butt cheeks were covered in red squares, making her bottom look like a checkered picnic blanket.

Spencer chuckled before slyly leaning forward and biting her gently on the left butt cheek.

Ashley spun around, her eyes wide. "Did you just bite my ass?"

"Huh? Oh, why yes, yes I did. I just bit your ass," Spencer mused, helping Ashley get dressed.

Ashley held her eyes for a moment before winking. "Kinky," she said, making the blonde snort. "Let's go get Michelle and go back to mines okay?"

"Why don't we go to mines?" Spencer asked, slyly stepping out into the hall, giving Ashley the go-ahead that it was okay to do so. "Glen's gonna be out until late."

"You, uh, you want us there?" Ashley asked, the question not as low-key as it sounded. She knew what she was asking, and Spencer knew it too.

"Of course I want you there," she said, smiling brightly and stopping them before they got to close to the training room. "Look Ashley, when I said I love you, I meant it. I _love_ you. And, loving you means loving everything about you, and everything that comes along with you. I get that you and Michelle…and even Aiden are a packaged deal. And, it doesn't bother me. I love that little girl so much. I only hope that one day you'll fully incorporate me into your life."

Ashley watched her for the longest time, her heart getting fuller by the second. "You're already there Spencer. You honestly have no idea do you? How I really feel about you? You make me the happiest I've ever been in my entire life. And, despite what everyone may think, I've had some happy times. But nothing compares to how I feel with you, and when it's us and Michelle, I just…I don't know, there's not even words to describe it. I…Spencer I am _so_ in love with you and I'm suddenly very aware that we are the most disastrously ineloquent people on the planet."

"Yeah," Spencer giggled, understanding the girl's torment. Words never ever came out exactly right. "But that's what makes us a perfect match," she said softly, stepping into Ashley and taking her hand, reveling in how precisely their fingers and palms fit together. "So," she asked, her voice still quiet. "My place?"

Ashley just smiled in answer.

--

"Madison," Gallo Jr. drawled, smiling evilly from his position seated at the rear of the room. "We've been waiting for you."

"Oh yeah," Madison said, sensing something was up. "What for?"

Gallo Junior just nodded towards some shadowy corner and a light was flipped on, revealed a hooded figure, slumped unimpressively in a chair. His arms were tied to it and he was apparently gagged. The hood was then ripped off of his head and Madison gasped.

They had Brandon.

"It's been brought to my attention that you…you may have other intentions. Ones that don't fall in line with me," Gallo said, producing a loaded gun from his waistband. "It's time to see where your loyalties lie."

Gallo held the gun out for her and she promptly took it, but he tugged back on it, not relinquishing its grip. "Try anything stupid and you'll be dead before the thought's left your mind," he snarled, turning the weapon loose.

Madison gulped, but aside from that, didn't let on that she was unnerved. She walked over to Brandon, pressing the cold metal of the gun barrel against his left temple. Brandon's head lolled back and he attempted to open his eyes, but all he could see was a blur. Whatever they had given him was powerful. Madison stared down at him, her eyes cold and her precision calculated, but she couldn't do it. She couldn't harm another for the greater good. Her hesitation grew longer and Gallo Jr. grew restless.

"Well," Gallo barked, already annoyed. "What's taking you so damn long?"

"Just…give me a minute," Madison semi-yelled, trying to organize her thoughts.

"She ain't gonna kill him boss," some fat fucker spoke up. "I told ya. She's a mole."

Madison whirled the gun around on them, aiming it at the fat bastard. "I'll kill you, you fucker." And she would've pulled the trigger just then, had there not been about five more guns aimed in her direction.

"Is what he's saying true Madison?" Gallo asked quietly, his expression unreadable. "Have you betrayed me?"

Quickly Gallo was on her, one hand around her waist, the other gripping the gun and the handle, both of their fingers wrapped around the trigger. He forcefully walked them over to Brandon, pointing the gun at his head. "Shoot!" he ordered loudly, right in her ear. "Blow his fucking brains out right now!"

Madison shivered greatly and he felt it, finally, her apprehension. He knew why she didn't want to kill him, but he was gonna have fun with her anyway. "Is it because he's fucked you?" Gallo Jr. whispered crudely into her ear. He brought their gun-holding hands down, trailing the piece of metal up the inside of her thigh. "Is that why this is so hard?" he continued, moving the weapon ever higher so that it was pressed vulgarly against her. "Can you not kill him because he's made you scream?" he snarled before throwing her aside, Madison falling to the floor with the force of it all. "Or maybe it's because you're a double-crossing bitch who's working for the feds!" he roared, his anger finally bubbling to the surface. "What?" he asked, watching as her eyes widened. "You thought I wouldn't find out?!" He got down on the floor, in her face. "I'm Louis fucking Gallo," he whispered, the words punctuated so harshly that he spat on her with every word. "I know _everything_," he continued quietly, his cold eyes staring into her fearful ones. "I should kill you right now," he muttered, bringing up the gun again and pointing it at her head.

She whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut tight.

"But, I think I'd rather you watch this fucker die first," he growled, standing swiftly and walking up fast to Brandon. He was just about to pull the trigger when another voice spoke up.

A voice that sounds a lot more familiar if it's squeaky.

"Wait!" Ricky called out, stepping forward from the shadows. "Mr. Gallo Sir, I don't think it'd be a good idea to do that."

Madison's eyes grew even larger. What the hell was going on?

"Does it look like I give a shit about what you think?" Gallo growled but he didn't pull the trigger.

"I know, Sir. But…listen to reason. The feds are gonna be running in here in no time if she goes down. Plus, with the owl eye there's no way we can dispose of the bodies," Ricky explained.

"I still don't see what that has to do with me killing this bastard," the mobster's son grumbled.

"There's no need to, Sir. Madison's come clean about who she is. And, he won't remember a thing if we turn 'im loose. We don't need any more suspicion drawn to us, Mr. Gallo. It'll be impossible to get to the Davies if the feds even think we've got him," Ricky continued.

Gallo folded his arms, rubbing his temple with the gun, thinking. "So, you suggest we turn the boy loose and give Miss Duarte here a free pass? That ain't gonna fly with me kid."

And Ricky didn't think it would either. "There are other ways of teaching someone a lesson," Ricky said, a conniving grin coming to life on his face. "Especially a woman."

"I like the way you thinks kid," Gallo Jr. said, smiling sadistically at the fallen Latina.

--

Megan sighed as the juice on her iPod got dangerously low. She was gonna have to hop off the treadmill now to put it in the speaker dock.

And she hated breaking her routine.

"Hey D," she called out to the girl working beside her on the rowing machine. She held out her iPod with a smile.

Dina rolled her eyes.

"Fuckin' bitch," Megan muttered, stopping the treadmill and going to complete the task herself. Since she was up she might as well go get some water from the kitchen. Hell, if she was gonna break the routine, might as well go all out. She was passing through the hallway, when she caught the tail-end of a very odd conversation.

"…be dropped off somewhere inconspicuous man. Somewhere where someone could get lost, you feel me…Yeah…well, when?....okay then, we'll do it then…Nah, it's all good. I've got all of that handled."

She waited in the hallway for him to come out of the bedroom, and nearly scared him half to death.

"Who was that Timmy?"

"Oh…uh, what?"

"On the phone, who were you talking to?"

"A friend. Old friend of mine," he lied, very badly too.

Megan didn't let on though. "Okay, well I hope it's not about Ashley and Spencer. We know they're dating already," she smirked, thinking she'd figured out the subject of his secret convo. "And we're letting the cat out of the bag at the dinner."

"Right," Timmy said, not really paying attention. He was more or less hoping she'd disappear right now actually.

Good thing too. Because, had he been paying attention, Louis Gallo would have the confirmation he needed.

--

"So, when are we telling them?" Arthur asked Paula, slipping on his night shirt.

"I want to wait until after this mixer and everything," Paula said as she sat in front of the hotel room mirror, brushing out her hair.

"The longer you put it off Paula, the worse it's gonna be," he warned her. After all, he was a counselor. He knew all about these things.

"I know that Arthur," she hissed. "I don't want there to be any added…stuff on Spencer before she has these publicity things. It's gonna be stressful enough."

"Yeah," Arthur agreed, with a sigh. He climbed under the covers, relaxing instantly.

"I just hope she won't hate me," Paula said, climbing into bed with him, a safe distance between them.

Arthur reached over and flicked off the table lamp. "I think it'll work out better than you think," he said, a twinkle in his eye.

--

There was no sex that night.

They never exactly finished what they started in the closet.

But they did give Michelle a bath, letting the girl make silly hairstyles with the shampoo.

They did read to her what used to be (and secretly still is) Spencer's most favorite bedtime story: _**Sparky – The Spy Dog.**_

Ashley snickered a little at that.

They did leave the little light on in the hall so that she wouldn't get scared.

And, when Ashley finally crawled into the bed with the little girl, she clung to her, sleepily calling out for "Penser too?"

Well, now. Who could resist that?

So, that's what the girls did that night when things were more than likely about to change.

They let time stand still.

--

The car drove up onto the muddy bank and the men clamored out of the vehicle.

Brandon, still wrapped in a sheet, was heaved over one of the larger guy's shoulders. They moved quickly, wordlessly, except for the word "There" when they found the perfect dumping spot.

His body was carelessly tossed to the ground, the sheet, stained in old and new blood, was pulled away from him, leaving just a slightly battered body in board shorts and a t-shirt. No one would ever be the wiser.

The car sped away, the brake lights disappearing into the distance. It could travel a little faster now it seemed.

Now that it was a passenger less full.

--

**Review. It's good for you.**


	23. Too Much To Lose

**Thursday 11:15 P.M.**

"I hope you're ready to die Ashley Davies," Louis Gallo hissed, holding the gun against the girl's head. Her eyes darted around the room at all of her siblings.

Karen, lower lip trembling, mouthed that she loved her "big little sister."

Kyla had resigned to not watching. Her eyes squinted closed, even as the tears cascaded down her face.

Adam valiantly fought against his restraints, tugging at the chains and cuffs in earnest.

But she merely swallowed, never making a sound.

She was about to die but she'd keep that girl with her always and her mind immediately went to that morning.

That very same day.

It seemed like ions ago now.

**--**

**Thursday 4:26 AM**

Ashley awoke relatively early the next morning.

There had been some overwhelming emotion settled uncomfortably in her stomach which got her up and running. It dissipated slightly when she saw her baby sleeping soundly next to her, and completely when she found Spencer some short time after that. The blonde was sitting on the small balcony that branched off of her bedroom.

"Hey," she called out softly to the other girl to avoid startling her.

"Hi," Spencer replied in a whisper, an easy smile gracing her face as she patted her legs in invite.

Ashley eased onto her lap, her eyes drawn to the spectacular view: the rose and golden hues streaking across the sky as the sun was barely above the water's surface. The air had a quiet calm to it, a stillness, and while it wasn't exactly vibrant out, the world didn't seem as immobile as it did before. A slight breeze washed over them, baptizing them in the winds of the Pacific.

"I've never actually watched the sunrise before," Ashley said, her voice quiet.

"Really?" Spencer asked, tightening her grip around the other girl. "I try not to miss it. Although, lately, I haven't had much choice." Spencer's light grin worked its way across her face.

Ashley smiled. "Been otherwise occupied?"

"Something like that," Spencer mused and Ashley chuckled quietly, settling further into her embrace.

"I've been meaning to ask you…" the brunette ventured, her stomach in knots.

"Hmm?"

"Maybe…you know, maybe, since you spend so much time over there anyway, maybe you'd like to bring some of your stuff…you know, to my place?" If anyone was ever more successful with tripping over her words they had not been found yet.

"Some of my stuff?" Spencer questioned, moving slightly so that she could see Ashley's face. "My stuff?"

"All of it, actually," Ashley amended, her eyes on the other girl's.

"Are you asking me to-"

"Yeah." Ashley couldn't actually say it.

_That_ would be scary.

"You want me to-"

"Yes," Ashley interrupted again. "I want you to." She met the blonde's gaze again. "Spencer, will you?"

**--**

"Hey, here you go son," some gruff man told him, shoving a cup of coffee into his face.

Brandon grasped the cup tightly, still keeping the blanket wrapped tightly around him. He couldn't for the life of him remember what he'd done yesterday. But he must have gotten pretty wasted to pass out in a marsh.

"Now," the man started, rubbing at his chin, his intent gaze settled on Brandon. "Do you remember anything, anything at all, about your whereabouts yesterday?"

Brandon shook his head, taking a small sip of the acrid tasting coffee. "I'm telling you, I remember waking up and seeing the grocery list on the counter. Then everything's kinda…screwy."

The man looked past Brandon, at the mirror, shaking his head.

Raife, on the other side of the mirror, looked to the man at his side. "He doesn't remember anything."

"That would seem to be the case,"

"So…"

"Intelligence says that they are going to try to make a move tonight. That's what we'll have to rely upon," the man said, not sounding very convincing. He moved to leave the room, obviously not having any other ideas.

And, yeah, that wasn't enough for Raife Davies.

He grabbed the man by his jacket lapels, pulling him back into the room, in front of him. "Well, excuse me if I'm not too keen on your intelligence or your abilities Johnson but your quote un-quote skills got this poor boy kidnapped and maybe worse."

"He's alive isn't he?" Johnson said, turning to get past the man, but Raife moved in his path.

"Because your agent stuck his neck out; something that could have gotten them all killed. Look, these are my children. I'm not willing to gamble with their lives,"

"Well, Mr. Davies, that's what you've _been_ doing," Agent Johnson roared back, his nostrils flaring. "This whole thing! The cover-up, the conspiracy: It's been one big gamble and it's about to pay-off and I don't need you or anybody else telling me that I'm not handling this thing the right way. Now, if you would please step aside so I can do my goddamn job."

The words proved to be unnecessary as he just brushed Raife aside and rushed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

**--**

Madison looked up through a swollen eye as the door creaked open. She couldn't see a thing in the dark, and having only one eye available to her didn't exactly help matters.

Her hearing was fine though and there was no mistaking who the owner of that startled gasp was.

"Get out," she muttered out, spitting some blood onto the floor.

"I'm so sorry," Ricky said, sliding the door closed behind him. "I came as soon as I could," he continued, working to force open her restraints. He picked the locks on the chains expertly and had her free in a matter of seconds, but he hadn't prepared for what she decided to do next.

"Fucking idiot," she hissed, using all the strength she had to leap at him, forcing them both back into the small room's near wall. Ricky's head bounced off the cement with a hard thud. "You're a fucking idiot."

"I had to Madison," Ricky whispered as loudly as he dared, trying to convince the girl that they were still on the same side. "If they killed Brandon, you'd never forgive yourself," he said, holding her off only enough so that she didn't bash his head in.

The fight gave from her right then and she finally broke, crying, her body collapsing against his and he held her close. "How many?" he asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

"Timmy," she stuttered out, sobs wracking her body.

"It's alright Mads. This shit is almost over," he cooed, holding her closely. "Almost."

**--**

"What time do we have to be there?" Aiden asked from the shower, washing his hair as Kyla stood primping in front of the mirror.

The picture of domestication.

"Trent said around five-ish so probably closer to six," she said with a smirk. They never showed up to events on time.

"Hmm. You know…" Aiden trailed off, peeking out from the shower for a moment. His hair worked into an Alfalfa do by the shampoo. "We do have some time to kill and I've been missing me some Kyla time."

She smiled at the mirror's reflection. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," he said, splashing some water at her and fixing her with a sly grin.

"Let's go get something to eat then," she said, playfully heading for the bathroom door as he groaned.

"I'm eating in," he said, making it out of the shower in no time, pressing her body against the door, sandwiched against his.

In the living room, the phone rang repeatedly before going to the answering machine.

"Hey! Anybody there?! Pick up!" Trent's dejected voice heaved a sigh. "I hope you guys get this before you leave the house, but nobody go anywhere until I-"

Dial tone.

**--**

"Hide," Aiden whispered, shoving Kyla aside as he heard Spencer's apartment door opening.

"What are you doing here?" Ashley asked him, confused. "And, why do you look like that?"

It really serves no other purpose than pure amusement but I'll do it anyway. He was wearing loud board shorts, some Vans, a button shirt and bow tie, with a tuxedo jacket…and tails.

"What? This is fly," he said, inspecting his own outfit. "And I'm here to pick up my date. She's a brunette, about yea high," he said, measuring her height with his hand. "And she sometimes likes the every color ice cream from Baskin-Robbins."

"He's talking about me Mommy," Michelle said, kicking her legs against the couch as Spencer brushed her hair.

"There she is. Aw, shucks. You wanna get hitched pretty girl?" he asked, leaning down so she could kiss his cheek.

"Daddy silly," she giggled, kissing him anyway.

"So, you guys ready to go?" Kyla asked her sister, asking her something else with her eyes.

"Born ready, little sis," she fired back, raising an eyebrow.

"Well," Aiden said, taking Michelle from Spencer now that she was all dollified and what-not. "We need to get a move on because we have to pick up Karen, and then Brandon and Tasha before we can even go."

"Wait, Karen's going?" Ashley asked, confused.

Kyla rolled her eyes. "Trent's on this new family matters thing. Plus, since we are brining Michelle, she will be the only Davies not in attendance."

"Hey, my pumpkin's a Dennison,"

"Don't remind me," Ashley deadpanned, grabbing Spencer's hand. "Shall we my lady?" she asked, kissing Spencer's knuckles.

"We shall," Spencer replied, following her out of the door.

"Aww, that was cute," Aiden said, holding Michelle in his arms, before realization cut in. "Wait, what was that?!"

**--**

The twin eyed her brother from the mirror, not at all comfortable with how he looked.

"You sure you're okay to go to this thing Brandon? You look kinda frail," Tasha asked him, putting the finishing touches on her make-up.

"I'm fine," he assured her. "Besides, Trent said we weren't supposed to miss it."

"So what? I'm sure he'd excuse you for feeling like crap." Her suspicions had been on edge ever since he disappeared yesterday, but, when he was escorted home by the police her anxiety level skyrocketed.

"I feel fine Tasha," he almost yelled before calming himself. "I feel fine. Just, I'm going, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed, her hesitation great. If he wanted to kill himself, then that was just fine with her. She'd give him hell for it though. And it'd be much worse than the glare she was giving him now.

Brandon simply turned away from her, focusing on getting ready. He didn't know what it was, but something was telling him that he needed to be with them tonight. Something deep in his gut made him believe that the ramifications of him not going could be dire and life-altering.

**--**

"You guys heard from Madison?" Brandon asked the car, but, of course, no one had.

"I tried calling her cell, but all I got was a voice mail,"

"Trent called me and said that she was running a little late or something," Kyla offered.

"Or something," Ashley murmured, before turning to Michelle. "Are you excited baby? This is your first ever major surfing event."

Michelle just nodded, looking out the window as the car slowed and slews of people came into view.

It wasn't the biggest event of the year, but it was one of the ones that got the most attention. The NAPS, National Association of Professional Surers (making something up again), organizes a mixer, bringing together the hottest stars in professional surfing, the media, and the fans (which sometimes consists of hot stars). Like, the year the cast of the O.C. came and Brandon (and Ashley) hooked up with Mischa Barton.

Good times.

"Ashley! Spencer! Over here!"

Flick!

Michelle curled up onto Aiden's shoulders, shying away from the attention. Aiden felt her clenching his shoulders and looked down at her, worriedly.

"Whatsa matter Pumpkin?"

"Scawy Daddy," she pouted.

"There's no reason to be scared baby, Daddy's got you,"

"And Mommy's here too," Ashley added, catching a glimpse of the conversation.

"Hey Dennison! Is that the baby?!"

"This is Michelle," he beamed proudly at the little girl. "She's three and she's totally awesome."

"Fwee, Daddy,"

"Fwee," he amended, laughing slightly.

"Aww, she's a cutie. Get the kid!" someone called out, and there went the flashbulbs.

**--**

"Hey, are they here yet?" Dina asked, walking over to Glen.

"No," he said, stepping away.

"Aww, come on Glenny, there's no need to be shy. Not in front of all these people. This is the night ROXY and KaTo play nice."

"I don't see why you don't play nice all the time,"

"We're rivals Glen. That's all. We hold no other grudges against each other than that," she said, her eyebrow raised wickedly. "Those your parents?"

Glen followed her line of vision and sure enough there were Mama and Papa Carlin talking to some members of the press. "That'd be them yeah."

"Hmm…" Dina trailed off, walking her fingers along his collarbone. "I wonder how they're gonna react…"

"React to what?"

"Our little surprise," Dina hedged, inching away from him, the crowd immediately swallowing her up.

"What surprise? Wait, Dina! What surprise?!"

"What the hell are you yelling about?" Kyla asked him.

"Hey," he said, Dina forgotten. "When did you get here?"

"A few moments ago. I didn't know your mom and dad were coming,"

"Me neither, but they insisted," he shrugged. "So, are they still gonna go through with it?"

Kyla nodded. "I think so…I mean, they haven't given me any indication otherwise."

"It'll work out, you know," Glen said. "For all of us. You'll see."

"Oookay," she sighed, catching Aiden's eye out of her peripheral.

**--**

"Goddamn," Ricky swore as he and Madison reached yet another dead end. They really needed to get out of this place and fast.

But that Louis Gallo, along with being a crazy bastard, was extremely distrustful, and his hide-out was severely locked down. Once you were in, you were there. Until you asked him to let you out.

And that was not an option for them.

**--**

"I'm such a huge fan of yours. You know, I've just taking up surfing and-"

"Spence, stay away," Ashley whispered, tugging her away from that conversation.

"Ash_ley_," Spencer whined. "That was Mischa Barton."

"I know and she was two syllables from propositioning you,"

"Oh really? And you know this how?"

Ashley stuttered a bit and Spencer only chuckled. "Thought so," she quipped.

"Well then, see? Aren't you glad I came and rescued you?"

"From a hot girl? Psh. No thanks," Spencer teased.

"Screw you, blondie," Ashley said hotly, shoving her away, but Spencer caught her, sliding her hands into the other girl's hoodie.

"Time and place Davies. Name the time and place," she whispered, getting as close to the brunette as she dared.

"Mommy!" Michelle squealed, running up to them. She didn't look like her regularly jubilant self though. She looked afraid.

"What's the matter baby?" Ashley asked, scooping her up. "Where's Daddy?"

"I don't know." Michelle's lower lip quivered.

Both Spencer and Ashley craned their necks trying to spot the young man but he was nowhere to be found.

**--**

"When do you think they're gonna realize we're missing?" Tasha asked, kicking at the walls of the room, or, more appropriately, cellar.

"Why would they? Ashley and Spencer are up there, and my girlfriend's too busy cavorting with her secret lover," Aiden practically snarled.

"I seriously doubt Kyla is cheating on you,"

"Then what else is she doing with that Glen dude?"

The doors to the cellar swung open then, and two men shoved a struggling Glen inside, securing his wrists to the wall, much like the other two prisoners.

"You fucking bastards!" Glen yelled, pulling hard at his restraints, which, obviously, didn't give at all.

"There's no point in yelling you idiot. We're underground or something," Aiden murmured, kicking the ground.

"How far down do you think we are?" Tasha ventured, peering up into the vaulted darkness.

"Do either of you know what's going on?" Glen asked.

"I don't know, but I hope to hell it's just some kind of really fucked up publicity stunt. And I swear, if anything happens to Michelle-"

"Don't think like that Aiden," Tasha interrupted, not wanting to go there. "Let's put our heads together. Maybe we'll come up with something."

**--**

"This isn't like Aiden. He wouldn't just leave Michelle alone in a room full of strangers," Ashley spoke absently and mostly to herself.

"You think something happened to him?"

Before Ashley could give much thought to the idea, the sound of a microphone being tampered with echoed throughout the room.

"Sorry," Megan offered, looking a little sheepish before clearing her throat. "We, my teammates and I, have been waiting a very long time for this moment. We've been plotting and planning meticulously for the exact moment to reveal, and now is that moment. Now, this may come as a grave shock to you but those two women," she paused here, pointing at Spencer and Ashley, a bright spotlight shone down on them suddenly. "Spencer Carlin and Ashley Davies are dating."

The crowd gasped theatrically at the proclamation, each and every eye in the room on Spencer and Ashley and also Michelle because Ashley was still holding her.

"And don't even try to deny it because we know it's true," Dina added, playing a recorded conversation between Spencer and Glen over the microphone.

She'd bugged their house the night she slept with Glen.

Ashley turned to Spencer wide-eyed and shocked. She was out; it didn't really matter to her one way or another. But Spencer was still in the closet, to the public, and more importantly, to her parents.

So imagine her surprise when Spencer merely grabbed both sides of the other girl's face, planting one hell of a kiss on her mouth. Jaws fell open all around, including little Michelle who thought the looks on the people's faces were funny.

A gob-smacked Megan just looked on from the stage where she'd just made her announcement, unbelieving.

Spencer finally pulled away, turning back to glare daggers at the scheming member of Team ROXY. "Yeah, we are. You got a problem with that?"

"Yay! Penser!" Michelle said, clapping her hands, soon to be followed by the rest of the people in the room.

"That was very awesome Spencer Carlin," Kyla beamed proudly, congratulating the other girl with a hug.

"Very high class," Brandon joked, accepting the playful punch in the arm. "I think you broke the missus though," he added, nodding over at a very dazed Ashley.

"She's all good," Spencer commented dryly, wrapping her arms around her waist. "Ain't that right baby?"

"I love you," Ashley finally said, shaking her head a little. "Like, I really love you. Like, almost the mostest."

"Second to Michelle of course," Spencer said, tickling the little girl slightly.

"It might be a tie," Ashley chuckled a little, but she was nothing if not serious.

Spencer shot her a disbelieving look. "There are no ties when it comes to Michelle."

**--**

"Hey, do you guys hear that?"

"What now Glen? God, you're such a baby,"

"Dude, what is your problem?"

"My _problem_ is that you're sleeping with my girlfriend,"

"Here we go," Tasha rolled her eyes.

Glen blinked a few times before dissolving into uproarious laughter. He seriously couldn't stop and apparently it was contagious because in a few moments Tasha was laughing too.

"I don't see what's so funny," Aiden muttered, but only because he was pursing his lips together, trying not to laugh.

"You think Kyla's cheating on you…with _me_?" Again Glen started chuckling, but calmed himself down after a few moments. "She's not cheating on you dude. I swear. But, yeah, we talk. Only about Spencer and Ashley though. See, they were gonna announce it tonight, but they're dating…each other."

"Oh my God, are you serious?" Aiden questioned, stunned…somehow.

"Yeah, so that's why Kyla and I were very hush/hush about our phone conversations. We're not getting it on man," Glen said, barely managing not to laugh again.

"Wow," Aiden breathed out, turning to look at Tasha. "Isn't that crazy?"

"I thought so," Tasha said, not all too surprised obviously.

"What do you mean, you thought so?"

"Well, when I walked in on them I was like, 'whoa',"

"Wait, what? You knew?"

"So if you knew, and Kyla knew, and Glen knew,"

"And Brandon and Madison, only they didn't care," Glen added.

"So I was the last one to find out." Aiden pouted.

"Dude, this is so not the time to be harpin' on that,"

"But I always find out about stuff late,"

"Well, look on the bright side. You'll be one of the first ones to find out about this," Tasha said, jingling her cuffs for emphasis.

"Yeah," Aiden said with a sigh. "I guess you're right."

Glen leaned over to her to whisper. "Bright side?"

"It was either that or have him whine for the next half an hour," she whispered back.

Aiden groaned. "I heard that."

**--**

The frenzy had calmed down somewhat, but through it all Aiden had not re-appeared and, from the looks of things, Glen had gone missing too.

"Okay," Kyla said, making her way over to the newly-confirmed couple. "I can not find Karen or Adam anywhere."

"Did you ask Trent?" Ashley asked her, sitting Michelle down in the chair next to her, between her and Spencer.

"He's being so distant and avoidy tonight. Plus, he looks like he has a million things to do," Kyla sighed, sitting down wearily. "When is this thing over?"

"I think we have a few more hours," Spencer offered sympathetically. She wanted to bail too, preferably before she ran into her parents.

"Hi Spencer,"

Too late.

"Mom, Dad, hi," she said brightly.

"Uncy Arty. It's Uncy Arty Mommy. He's the magic man," Michelle said happily, reaching out for Arthur.

"That's great Sweetie," Ashley said, keeping her eyes on the Carlins. "Hi Mr. and Mrs. C."

"Hello Ashley," Arthur said warmly, already on magic trick number two for Michelle. Paula, though, looked distracted.

"Spencer," she started, her voice concerned.

"Look Mom, I know what you're gonna say," Spencer interrupted. "But I really like Ashley and I-"

"Spencer, look at me," her mother said, and the blonde did, locking on to eyes a deeper blue than her own. "I don't care about you and Ashley. I am very happy for you. But, where's your brother?"

"What?"

"Your brother honey," Arthur helped. "Have you seen him?"

"Wait, you don't care that I'm gay…or with Ashley?"

"We care sweetie. We always care about you, but no we don't have a problem with you or Ashley or you and Ashley," Arthur explained.

"Now, have you seen your brother?" Paula asked again.

"No, I haven't seen him since we first came in," Spencer said, sharing a confused look with Ashley. Was it really gonna go over that easy?

"Shit," Paula cursed, looking around worriedly. "Okay, you all stay here. I'm serious. Don't move. Art, come with me."

The couple hurried off and Ashley, Spencer, and Kyla all shared a look before breaking down into simultaneous fits of giggles.

"So, I guess that settles it then," Ashley said.

"I can't believe they were so chill," Spencer agreed, snorting a little bit.

"It's because I'm so awesome. I swear it is," Ashley assured her. "Maybe some of it'll rub off on you when you move in."

Kyla's attention was piqued. "Moving? In? You?" she asked, pointing at Spencer.

"Oh, this is so great. It's gonna be so fun. We can like stay up all night and watch movies and eat ice cream. See, Ashley's all broody at night time, and Madison's always in her room, so now I'll actually have an actual roomie."

"Yeah…" Ashley trailed off. "About that…we were actually thinking of getting our own place together."

Kyla blinked. "What?!"

**--**

"Oh God," Madison groaned, once they'd finally made it. It was hell getting out of Gallo's place, but they'd stumbled upon the weapons room along the way and loaded up. If Gallo's plans were going into effect tonight, they were gonna need them.

"Let's go in through the back," Ricky said, fearful of a security check.

They rounded the heavily lit building, which was also heavily guarded. But on the side, near the rear, there was an open window, reachable with a boost.

"Come on," Ricky said, clasping his hands together. "You get in, and then help me up."

Madison, aching and bloodied, readied herself for the lift, grabbing the ledge on the first try. Sliding into the window, she surveyed the premises before using her jacket as a rope for Ricky to use, easily pulling the young man into the room.

"Where do you think this is?" Ricky asked her, peering around the room.

"I don't know," Madison whispered back, then becoming deathly silent as she heard footsteps approaching. Several.

Her and Ricky both dived behind a desk as the door swung open, bathing the room in light for a split second before it gave way to darkness again.

They listened with wide eyes to the struggle, some person being forced into the room, yelling loudly behind what they assumed was a hand wrapped around heir mouth.

"You take the old man," one voice said and Madison shuddered. It was Timmy. "I'm gonna go back and get the bitch."

The door opened and closed once again and all they could hear was the sound of heavy breathing before a quiet "thump" and then "THUD!".

Ricky peeked out from behind the desk, watching the larger man toss a groaning (so still alive) Arthur Carlin over his shoulder. He opened the closet door, which appeared to be some sort of passageway, or at least the glimpse of it Ricky got to see. Once the man stepped inside he closed it right behind him.

"I think he's going for Ashley, Rick," Madison told him hurriedly, already prepared to go after Timmy.

"Wait Mads. You're not full strength yet and who knows how many of Gallo's people are out there,"

"I want his ass Ricky," Madison growled.

"We'll get him. Why don't you find out what they're doing with Mr. Carlin? I'll trail Timmy,"

Madison eyed him suspiciously before agreeing reluctantly. "If anything happens to them," she warned, not needing to finish.

"It won't," he told her and without another word, he left.

**--**

"I'm just gonna go to the washroom," Spencer leaned over to whisper in her ear.

Ashley nodded, grabbing onto her hand and holding it before she could get too far. "C'mere."

Spencer leaned down and Ashley whispered something to her, something that made them both smile when she pulled back away. "I will," she told her, giving her a light kiss on the cheek.

And then she was off, to the bathroom, but not before Trent stopped her. "Where are you going?"

"To the washroom," she answered, brows furrowed as he appeared to be looking for someone. "What?"

"Um, Brady!" Trent called out, flagging some man in black down. "Could you escort her to the bathroom?"

"I think I'll be fine on my own, thanks," Spencer said, smiling tightly at the two.

"It's for your own security Spencer," Trent insisted, sending the man with her anyway before heading off to oversee some other seemingly non-important task.

"I think I can take it from here," she told Brady, leaving him standing outside the bathroom door.

"Are you sure Miss Carlin?"

"I've been peeing on my own since I was three. I'm pretty sure I can handle it,"

Brady just shrugged and she walked on in, her cell phone buzzing almost immediately. "What part of 'I'll be right back' don't you understand?"

"You were taking too long," Ashley voice came through on the other end.

"Yeah. Trent cornered me and wouldn't let me go until I had a bodyguard,"

"He has been acting kinda weird lately. Anyway, where are you?"

"Why do you wanna know Davies?"

"C'mon Blondie. I'm gonna try to find you,"

"Well in that case…go seek," Spencer said, snapping her phone shut with a grin.

She'd taken care of business and was washing her hands when the bathroom door creaked open and she heard someone walk inside.

She smiled to herself. "Took you long enough Davies."

When she didn't get a reply, she turned around peering into the seemingly empty bathroom. "Ashley?"

Then two arms gripped her tightly, one around the midsection, the other around her neck, a hand coming up to clamp her mouth closed. She felt ragged exhalations against the shell of her ear, the figure behind her breathing rapidly before announcing in a deep, rough whisper, "Not Ashley."


	24. Much More To Gain

Madison stepped lightly on the stone stairs, thankful that she, at the last minute, decided to wear sneakers. It was a dimly lit passage, wherever it was, and it went down for ages. Still, she made sure to stay within the shadows, trailing after the strange man carrying Mr. Carlin because she knew that one wrong move would tip them off and there's no telling where she would be or what it is they'd do.

**--**

Spencer didn't know who the hell it was who had grabbed her and she didn't care. All that was important right now was that this person obviously did not have the best of intentions and he'd mentioned Ashley.

Major no-no.

She fought hard within his grasp, biting his hand and letting loose a loud yelp before being grabbed tighter, fingers curling around her slender neck, squeezing.

Then she remembered it.

_Miss Congeniality_.

Trying to calm her body down enough to concentrate her energy on the task at hand, Spencer exacted each and every step of the escape move.

She rammed her elbow into his stomach, making his hold on her arms loosen. Then she stepped on his left foot hard, making him cry out in agony. Arms free now, she brought up her right arm to clock him good in the nose, and last, but not least, she kneed him in the groin.

It wasn't enough to bring him down though, and he still pursued her, chasing her into one of the bathroom stalls, but she still had the advantage of being quicker than him in his weakened state, so when he came crashing into the stall door, she was prepared, kicking it outward as hard as she could, connecting with his face. The goon stumbled backwards, fortunately hitting the back of his head on one of the porcelain sinks, effectively knocking him out.

She thought she may have recognized him but she didn't have time to dwell on that.

She had to find Ashley… and fast.

**--**

The door was wrenched open again and Aiden, Tasha, and Glen all strained against the darkness, yelling at the unidentifiable figure.

"Look, dude! I know people and if anything happens to anybody I swear to God!" Glen yelled, trying to sound menacing, a difficult task when you couldn't actually see your captor.

"Shut up," the deep voice boomed, hitting the blonde boy squarely in the jaw. "You're just lucky you ain't dead yet."

Done with his task, the stranger opened the door again, ghastly shadows playing off the walls in the dank, dark room, but unlike the other times, the door remained open. Aiden craned his neck as far towards the opening as possible and was nearly annihilated when a rather large body came crashing down. He kicked at the figure, but it didn't move.

"Mr. Carlin?" they heard a voice ask, a familiar voice.

"Madison?!" Glen, Tasha, and Aiden all asked at once.

"Holy shit. Madison, come in here. Help us man!" Aiden yelled, only to have her hit him one good time.

"Shut the hell up. Someone may hear you," she whispered harshly, dragging the body into the room, the door sliding shut behind her.

"Wait. What's wrong with that guy?" Tasha asked, haltingly.

"Nothing," Madison said, dragging him to the far cellar wall, well hidden from the others. "He fell."

"Bullshit Madison," Aiden scoffed.

"Look, I don't have time to discuss it. I gotta go find Ricky and tell him you guys are fine,"

"Ricky's here too?" Tasha questioned, beyond confused.

"What the hell is going on Madison?" Glen asked, rattling his restraints. "We know you know."

"I'll tell you when I come back," she said, pulling on the cellar door handle.

It was locked.

"Fucking great," Madison grumbled, sliding against the heavy door to the floor.

"So, I guess you _can_ tell us now."

**--**

"Where's Ashley?" Spencer asked Kyla, running into the girl in her search for the older brunette.

"Whoa. What happened to you?" Kyla asked, holding Michelle closely by the hand. Spencer looked a little bit more than flustered, definitely bothered.

"Kyla, please…just tell me where your sister is,"

"I left her back at the sushi bar with Megan. I was getting sick of the-"

"Look, since I have no idea where that is can you please go and get her? Then find the nearest security guard and stick with him. There's some crazy stuff going on and it's…just, get to Ashley please."

"Okay, I'll get her," Kyla said, concern and confusion warring across her features. "Well, can you take Michelle to the potty? She really has to go."

"Alright, c'mon Chelle," Spencer said, picking the little girl up. "We'll go as soon as I find some protection."

She'd barely turned around when Brandon was in her face, looking worried. "Have you seen my sister?"

"No. What the hell is going on? Everyone keeps disappearing," Spencer cried out, frustrated. It was getting a bit scary now.

No.

A _lot_ scary.

"You're noticing too, huh," Brandon said, following her down one of the less crowded corridors.

"Yeah, and some crazy man just attacked me in the bathroom- oh, good there's a security guard,"

"Someone attacked you?" Brandon squealed incredulous, stopping in his tracks when the security guard turned around. "Spence, I don't thi-" he tried to interject but Spencer was on a mission, determined…detrimentally.

"Hi. I don't know exactly how to go about saying this,"

"Spencer," Brandon hissed, tugging on her arm as he slowly started to back up.

She ignored him. "But there's a crazy man attacking women in the washrooms. Just thought you might want to look into that," she said sarcastically.

"Spencer, come on," Brandon whispered louder, watching the man reach for his holster.

"Brandon, what the hell? They're here to help us,"

Brandon just kept shaking his head, backing up further. He was nearly down the hall.

"Hey, son. Come on. We won't hurt ya," the man said, hand still on his gun.

Brandon stopped, locking eyes with the man, watching as his mouth turned up into a wicked grin. He knew that grin, that face, those eyes. "Get him!" echoed loudly through his head. "Spencer! Run!" he yelled, before turning around, following his own command and taking off in the opposite direction.

The man grabbed Spencer, throwing her to another two "guards" before taking a shot at Brandon, his weapon on silencer mode. His aim was lethal but thankfully Brandon had taken off half a second before.

Had he not, he'd have been dead.

As it was, the man's bullet ended up hitting a light fixture before landing into a wall, Brandon yelling one more direction to Spencer before high-tailing it out of there. "Stay with Michelle!"

**--**

Ashley and Megan, the last two people completely oblivious to what was going on sat at the sushi bar, mildly arguing over Asian cuisine.

"Why are you so obsessed with everything I do? God, Megan. Live your own life," Ashley said, munching on a spring roll.

"I did, or I was…but then you came along and stole my spot. Not to mention my girlfriend,"

"But that was ages ago." Ashley sighed wearily. "You can't possibly still be upset with me for that."

"It's not just that," the other girl said, taking another sip of her now warm beer. "I thought you were my friend Ashley. I thought we actually cared about one another. But, you just threw it all away like it was nothing man. Nothing."

"I…look Megan, I'm sorry. I never intended for Tasha and I to sleep together that first time and I know she didn't. It was like after she'd already fucked up she didn't feel like there was a way out of it. There was no going back, you know. And I was young…er, and played into it. So, yeah, I apologize for that. But I never stopped caring about you. Why do you think I gracefully bowed out at ROXY? I knew you deserved the top spot. I felt like shit for what I did to you, and yeah, maybe it was the guilt, but…you were still my friend and you deserved to be happy."

Megan kept her eyes on the other girl the entire speech, weighing her words for validity. She knew she meant them. "You were never this sentimental. That Carlin girl has softened you," she stated plainly, taking a swig of beer.

"Yeah," Ashley nodded wistfully. "Yeah, she has."

"And you're admitting it?" Megan squealed, playfully incredulous and maybe a little serious. "What has she done to you?"

Ashley shoved her off the stool before standing up and nearly running into a twitchy and bloodied Timmy.

"There you are," Megan exclaimed, not too quick on the upkeep. She'd knocked back a few after the whole outing disaster virtually backfired. "Where the hell have you been? Dina and I have been looking for you all ov- What happened to your nose?"

"I was supposed to get the blonde bitch," Timmy whispered out, his voice quaking. His rounded eyes and slight twitch completed his menacing look. Ashley and Megan backed up slowly as he approached even slower. "That didn't quite work out how I expected," he started again, a few onlookers now taking notice of the scene unfolding. "But then I thought, 'what is all of this about anyway? What does the boss want?' And it hit me." He emphasized that moment by punching himself, hard, in the head. "He wants you Davies. He wants you dead. And I'm gonna be the one to bring you to him."

He surged forward suddenly and Megan immediately stepped in front of Ashley. This crackhead had apparently gone postal if he thought he was gonna hurt Ashley. "What is the matter with you moron?" she asked, poking him hard in the chest, but he pressed onward with a maniacal surge of energy, pressing himself insistently against her protective hands.

And then, just like that, his weight became too much to bear as he slumped forward, no longer reaching for Ashley. Megan gave him a slight push and he went tumbling sideways to the floor, blood gushing from the side of his head, pooling at their feet.

That didn't manage to hold their attention long though. No, Mr. Gallo Jr., in all his sadistic glory took the cake for attention-getters.

Especially since he was pointing a Colt .45 at them.

"So, we finally meet Ashley Davies," he growled, reaching out for her.

Ever heard of drunk courage? Megan had a lot of that. It explains why she reached for her friend, in spite of the off-kilter gun-wielding maniac hanging off her arm.

Also explains why she got hit in the head with said gun. The only reason she didn't get shot was that Gallo was too busy shooting at Ricky, who, having just reached the action, was a couple of seconds too late.

The chaos that ensued was expected but Gallo used it to his advantage, managing to slip out with the crowds, whispering to Ashley that she'd better keep her mouth shut or else.

**--**

Brandon kept mentally kicking himself in the ass the entire time he sat outside the building…in the alley.

He knew he had to go back. But what good was he against crooked security guards. Several crooked security guards. He didn't even have a weapon…or his phone.

He mentally swore for leaving that invaluable device behind. But then again, at the time, he was a little preoccupied with not getting shot. He could try finding a pay phone, but in this modern world of portable communication, it would take a while, at least.

The decision was made for him though when he heard yells and screams erupt suddenly from the building's entrance. Peering around the corner, his heart beating madly in his throat, he observed the commotion, noting with a sense of dread that there were no all black wearing, ear-piece sporting burly men amidst the scene of absolute bedlam; just camera men and reporters tripping one another trying to get away: kill or be killed at its finest.

Brandon swallowed against a dry throat. The absence of the men on the outside meant that they were all on the inside, laying in wait, and doing who knows what to his friends. There was only one way to do this. He had to get inside, undetected.

He looked down at his clothes.

Orange.

Easier said than done.

Just then he heard a faint hissing sound, coming from somewhere very close to where he was standing, only lower.

It was a heating vent, which probably led to the furnace, and any other room inside the building.

"Brandon, you genius," he squealed, ripping the grate away, running, or should we say, crawling off to save the day.

**--**

"Should have stayed with us Ricky boy," the two men grunted, roughly pushing him inside the room. This one was much better than the one they had put Aiden and the rest in. Much more comfortable and lit, plus it had heat.

Maybe they'd shown a little mercy to the little girl.

"Cuff him," one guy barked an order at the other who hastened to carry out the task. Ricky grunted in agony as his arms were stretched high above his head, his injured arm throbbing in protest. The man squatted down to look into Ricky's face, smiling in a sinister way, taunting. "I can't wait to see what he does to you."

Ricky spat in his face and received a hearty blow to the gut for his efforts, but thankfully, they left him alone. They had other matters to attend to.

Ricky hung his head in defeat. He had failed, but a shuffling sound to his left made him lift it again.

"Who's there?" he asked the darkness.

"You heard me?" Spencer asked, shocked also.

"I, uh, yeah," he admitted, tilting his head. He looked around and couldn't see the girl anywhere. "Where are you?"

"I think I'm on the other side of the room. I don't think they knew I was here," she added quietly.

"Are you alone?" he asked, hopeful.

"No. I have Michelle,"

"Oh God," Ricky groaned, both from the pain and the knowledge that the little girl was going through this. "Is she okay?"

"She's fine," Spencer said, smiling down lovingly at the little girl, longing to brush her hands through the girl's hair, to comfort her. "She's sleeping actually," she added, a little giggle the punctuation.

Ricky couldn't help chuckling too. "Well, that's good. Who was with you when…you know?"

"Just Michelle…and Brandon. That wank. He totally ran on us. If I ever see him again I'm gonna…I'm gonna…kick his ass," she whispered loudly so as not to wake Michelle.

"Well, go ahead and say how you really feel why don't you," the boy said, sending the heating vent clattering to the dirty floor with a swift punch. "I mean seriously Spence; you don't give me any credit."

"Brandon?!" Spencer gasped, relief flooding her body. She'd _actually_ thought he was dead.

"Yeah, yeah. Keep it down," he whispered, coughing a little. "I think I heard the crazy men in the next room." He pulled the rest of himself out of the venting shaft, before standing up and cracking virtually every bone in his body. "Aye, that's gonna hurt."

"Will you get us out of here?" Ricky said, shaking his shackles a little. Brandon, a past expert on picking locks, worked his Swiss army knife out of his back pocket and found the lock pick, setting Ricky free with ease.

The scouts were good for something.

He then moved on to Spencer, who, after sitting Michelle up properly effused him in a huge hug. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Aww, no problem. I owed you one. I didn't find you at the beach, remember?"

Spencer shook her head with a smile but Ricky broke up the tender moment. "Come on. We have to go and get the others." He shoved a .9mm in Brandon's face. "You know how to use one of these, right?"

"Uh…no, and, wait a minute, aren't you deaf?"

Ricky rolled his eyes and shoved the weapon into his hands. "Take it."

"Wait, how do we know that you're not one of the bad guys pretending to be a good guy?" Spencer asked, weary of virtually everybody now. "After all, you lied about being deaf."

Ricky sighed, really dreading the time they'd waste going over this. But he had to take them with him because if the men returned and saw that he was gone they'd do something horrible to Spencer or Michelle. "I was working deep undercover for the government, helping to bring down Gallo Junior. How he's tied to any of you is not something we can get into but the reason you should trust me now is that I haven't shot Brandon yet. He's a huge liability, dead weight and, quite frankly, you and I would fair better without him."

That's all it took. Spencer believed him in a second and Brandon was now dead-set on proving him wrong.

Ah, the wonders of reverse-psychology.

"I think I know where they're keeping the others. Just follow me," Ricky said, picking the lock on the dungeon door and edging out into the corridor. It was dimly lit, but instantly he recognized the passage as the same one he'd glimpsed earlier in the closet. Plus, he wasn't entirely out of it when they'd brought him down. He'd seen other doors.

"This way."

**--**

Ashley finally came to… in complete darkness.

She tried to open her mouth to scream but found that she couldn't effectively; not with the duct tape stretched over her face.

She tried to move but her arms were tied behind her back, waist tied to whatever she was seated on.

All at once, the panic hit her. She was alone, in the dark. She didn't know where her sisters were, or Adam. She didn't know where Spencer could be, and she was worried sick about her baby girl.

She wanted to vomit, but the action, she decided, would probably result in her choking to death, which only made her want to vomit even more.

She tried to remember the last thing she could but could only vaguely recall it. She remembered Timmy, acting all crazy and Megan getting up in his face. She remembered him falling, and she remembered the blood. Then she remembered...

"Are we all up to date then?" he asked cruelly. He'd been watching her, waiting for the dread to sink in. He'd watched her go from disoriented to panicked, and now she had finally reserved herself to her fate, the fear living and breathing within her like an entirely separate being. Two beings resigned in one body. "Do you… know where you are now?" he continued. "All of you?"

Ashley strained harder and she could hear it. The whimpers that weren't coming from her own mouth. There were others in here with her.

"I think it's time that I finally let you all know, face to face, just what kind of hell I've been living with. Take off their blindfolds and gags,"

At once the knots were loosened from the back of their heads, and they all blinked against the harsh although diminutive light that they hadn't been able to see before. Then their eyes widened imperceptibly as each and every sibling came to the realization that they all were in the same predicament.

"Karen, Adam, Ashley, and Kyla. The perfect little family," Gallo practically spat out, walking circles around Ashley. He turned to his henchmen. "Go dispose of the rest of those idiotic people."

"But boss-"

"No buts," Gallo hissed, and he honestly sounded like a serpent. "I want to enjoy this."

Without another word the men filed out of the mirrored room, closing and locking the door behind them.

"Now, who shall I start with?" he asked, his creepy grin finding a home on his face again. "Oh, I know," he drawled out, whirling around and pointing the gun at Ashley's head. "I hope you're ready to die Ashley Davies," Louis Gallo hissed, holding the gun against the girl's head. Her eyes darted around the room at all of her siblings.

Karen, lower lip trembling, was mouthing that she loved her "big little sister."

Kyla had resigned to not watching. Her eyes squinted closed, even as the tears cascaded down her face.

Adam valiantly fought against his restraints, tugging at the chains and cuffs in earnest.

But she merely swallowed, never making a sound.

She was about to die but she'd keep that girl with her always and her mind immediately went to that morning.

That very same day.

It seemed like ions ago now.

But now was here, and just as Gallo was about to pull the trigger, the mirrored room exploded with light as Brandon came crashing through.

He got up on wobbly feet because that whole jumping through a mirror is not as easy as it looks in the movies.

"I knew I should have killed you when I had the chance," Junior said, his finger tight on the trigger belonging to the gun pressed to Ashley's head.

"Yep, that's right," an unprotected and surprised he was still alive Brandon said, goading on the psycho. But if there was one thing he was good at, it was playing with people's minds. And _that's_ what they were counting on.

"Yeah, you didn't kill me," he said, hopping around and holding a hand to his bleeding knee. He limped his body in front of Kyla, out of sight momentarily.

Or, just long enough for Spencer and Glen to untie her.

They, in the midst of Brandon's grand entrance, had clamored through the broken mirror as well, hoping the boy's gallant arrival had made enough of a diversion.

"Don't move," Glen whispered, instructing the now freed brunette to not tip him off. They only had one shot at this and it had to be exact.

Madison only had one bullet left in her gun.

The trio of Ricky, Spencer, and Brandon had stumbled upon the others quite unexpected, Brandon wasting half his ammo on one of Gallo's men. Then he got bitch-slapped by Ricky for shooting at a man who had him in a head-lock…with his eyes closed.

But back to Brandon, he locked eyes with Ashley momentarily and smiled, ever the jokester. "Yeah man, we played you all along. Ricky was working for us the whole time," he hobbled in front of Karen this time.

"I knew that moron was disloyal. I knew when he tried to save that bitch Madison," Gallo hissed, his eyes nearly slits.

Brandon's body involuntarily twitched but he swallowed it down. He'd rip the bastard's face off later. "You're such a pathetic waste of flesh Gallo. What? You all broken up because your mommy and daddy sucked? So, what man. Get the hell over it. These kids lost their parents and you don't see them going on vengeful murderous rampages."

Gallo blinked a few times, his eyes staying focused on Brandon as he wobbled over to Adam.

Ashley's eyes caught the flash of blonde this time and her breath hitched, but Gallo didn't pay her any attention. His sick, cruel, and sadistic mind had just wrapped itself around the devastating fact:

They didn't know.

He laughed, callous and harsh barking notes, a hollow, lifeless song echoing around the soundless room. "You idiot," he spat at Brandon. "Do you honestly think that I'd be doing all of this if their parents were dead?"

Brandon balked, noticeably. "If?"

He laughed again, and it was almost psychotic. "What a trick it was. Convince the mafia you're dead and you'll be scot-free. It almost worked but see I…I was too smart to fall for that. That package was wrapped up a little too neatly."

Brandon shared a look with the Davies' children, waiting to see if recognition dawned on any of their faces. "I know Karen knows. She knows who you were…before me. My dad," Gallo Jr. continued, eyes also darting around to the Davies'.

The eldest Davies lowered her head, not believing it was coming out like this.

Madison, sensing something was escalating, readied her gun, positioning for a good shot, but there were too many bodies in the way.

"The Morgans. Just your average little perfect family, straight out of Trenton, New Jersey. Anthony and Katherine and their four precious children: Karen, Adam, Ashley, and Kyla," Gallo's voice took on a mocking quality. "But then my dad came along. He came and turned them into something…_spectacular_."

"It was the biggest trial of the century, at least in New Jersey, and with a few swift words, your dad had locked mine away for life," Gallo whispered, his mind years away. "For life," he repeated, transported back into that courtroom. He was so young, so afraid.

_He watched as the judge read the sentencing, banging the gavel to make it final. He watched his mother's face contort with desolation as she desperately clung to the man she loved, holding him as tightly as she could until they forcibly took him away._

"Your family ruined mine," he growled, his anger coming back with a vengeance. The nozzle was pressed ever closer to Ashley's temple and she only whimpered. "And I swore, one day… one day I'd have my revenge. But before I could do anything, the "Davies", Raife and Christine, parents of four, died in a Los Angeles freeway car accident. I remember reading that headline to this day. I was filled with such relief. My father was avenged, and not of my own hand. So, imagine my shock when I found out it was total bul- what in the-? Get up!" he roared, seeing her reflection in the mirror, even though the room was poorly lit.

"Get up right now or I swear she's dead!" he yelled again, his eyes flashing.

She still didn't move, but hearing the trigger being cocked back got her on her feet in an instant. "Don't!"

"Spencer," Ashley whispered, her heart thudding. "No."

"I'm sorry," Spencer whispered back, moving closer when Gallo instructed with her free hand for her to do so.

Madison decided it was definitely go time. And while she really wanted to know what the hell Gallo Junior was talking about, time was of the essence. She didn't know what was taking back-up so long, but she couldn't wait any longer.

Not another minute.

Gallo was becoming more and more unhinged.

Unfortunately, luck was not on her side, because, when she tried crab-walking into the room, her foot inadvertently crushed a piece of glass, the sound loud enough to draw Gallo's attention to her.

A lot of things happened at once. Gallo reached for Spencer at the same time as Brandon. Meanwhile, Madison took her shot, aimed squarely at Gallo, but with the movement of bodies, her shot missed him and instead she clipped Brandon who cursed like a-

"Mother fucker!" Brandon yelled, pulling his hand back. His skin burning like a coal had been inserted into his hand and was forcing its way out from the inside.

Gallo held Spencer to him; a shield.

He didn't know Madison was empty.

"Don't fuckin' move," he hissed to her, holding the gun against the blonde's head. The freed Davies' and Glen all stood, eyes wide as the scene unfolded. "I swear to God if any of you so much as breathes too loudly, I'm blowing her fuckin' head off."

Ashley's strained whimper finally made its way to his ears, and he maneuvered to position himself and Spencer right behind her, watching their reflected profiles in the mirror. He watched as they locked eyes using the mirror's reflection, the little light there was illuminating the image perfectly.

Baffled.

It puzzled him. How, in spite of everything that was happening, they still sought out each other and found comfort in what they found.

He felt Spencer's pulse slow underneath his fingers he had clamped around her neck. It sickened him, in a way, how love could still find its way into this place - this room filled with pending doom and death.

"You love her, don't you Ashley?" he mockingly asked the brunette, stroking Spencer's face with the gun. He brushed some of the wavy locks aside, gazing at Ashley's reflection. "You love this pretty little face and these wide blue eyes," he looked at her expectantly. "It's okay, you can tell me," he said, for a moment not sounding like the monster that he is.

Ashley, not being able to find her voice, simply nodded.

Evil Gallo came back full force. "And, you love her too, right?" he whispered harshly into Spencer's ear, yanking on her hair. "Ain't that right bitch?"

"Let her go man," Glen warned, growing a pair and stepping forward. Madison waved him off though.

"Gallo," she said, making sure to keep the gun trained on him. "Look, if I pull this trigger-"

"If you pull that trigger, blondie's dead," he interrupted. "Plain and simple," he finished, with a cold-hearted shrug.

Madison pressed closer, an obvious gamble, but the others were smart enough not to move an inch. Brandon, still in obvious pain, saw his advantage, at last.

Gallo was completely pre-occupied.

Madison and Spencer completely consuming his thoughts.

The boy shared a look with Ashley, asking.

Her eyes sparking gave the answer.

Without a second thought he deftly leapt at the man who, in his surprise, pulled the trigger. A loud bang echoed shortly thereafter, accompanied by the shattering of glass.

**--**

Spencer finally squinted open her eyes, the ringing in her ears almost deafening.

She felt the arms that once held her captive go slack a moment after and when she finally completely opened her eyes she saw his cold ones staring back at her, lifeless, a small dark red dot leaking blood from the center of his forehead.

Madison looked at her gun, sure the chamber was empty, and it was, and had been.

Gallo had been shot from behind and the person holding the smoking gun was none other than Paula Carlin.

"Mom?!" Glen squeaked, incredulous, staring at the woman he'd known all his life and never knew she had a shot like that.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked, still holding the weapon, surveying the room. "Spencer? Glen?"

Spencer shrugged out of the dead man's embrace, shuddering slightly. She moved to untie Ashley, collapsing into her. "Oh my God," she gasped once she could finally hold her and Ashley could hold her back. "Oh my God," Ashley whispered back, holding her tightly.

This pretty much started the hug fest, but there was still some explanations needed; lot of 'em.

"Okay," Brandon started, after everyone had made the rounds with the hugging and everything. "Now that all of _that_ is sorted out. Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

"Yeah, what gives MOM?" Glen really wanted that piece of information.

"Madison?" Brandon questioned.

"Well. I work for the CIA," Paula started. "And I knew I had seen you before," she added, looking at Karen. "We were neighbors…back in Jersey, before your parents had to move away. Witness protection and everything, but I never knew you were the same children. That information was never given to me. The government tends to work on a need to know basis. Anyway, I assumed that everything turned out okay, but when I saw the paper, the one of Spencer and Ashley, something in the corner caught my eye. Some man, leering at the both of you, and not like you'd expect. He was scowling. It was Timmy Reyes."

Madison spoke up now. "I had been assigned to you guys as a bodyguard of sorts, but nothing ever happened. I'd been doing recon of Team ROXY for a while. See, Megan, has some family in the mafia and we thought that maybe she was connected somehow, but it was Timmy that had all the ties. He was working for Gallo; had been for years. Anyway, when things didn't shake out as planned, I sought help from the one person who I knew had connections."

"That's when Madison and I started coordinating our efforts. We knew that Gallo was planning on making a move but the feds were content to just let it play out and I couldn't do that. Katherine, or Christine as you know her, was a dear, very dear friend to me and I couldn't, or rather, wouldn't let her down. Not again,"

"Ricky and I went rogue, turning to Paula for information, deciding to take matters into our own hands. Especially when we found out the agency was sitting on something; something we only just found out about tonight," Madison concluded, looking at the dead man. "Raife and Christine didn't die in that car accident. They lived. They're still alive."

It felt as though all of the air was sucked out of the room only to come whooshing back in as reinforcements finally arrived, having navigated the interior of Gallo's complex rather blindly.

Trent stepped in first, tripping over the body as he took a look around, counting heads.

Next was Johnson, the man in charge of this operation, wide-eyed and unbelieving that he'd missed everything.

The last two to enter looked rather timid and a little worse for the wear, but there was no denying they were elated at the prospect of this moment: the reunion.

"Oh my God," Christine said, bringing her hands up to her face immediately. It'd been four years, four long years.

"Daddy?" Karen whispered, moving forward a little.

"It's me," he smiled, nodding and holding out his arms. "It's us."

The Davies kids all rushed toward them and their parents enveloped them in warm embraces, showered them in kisses. Holding on as tight as possible, hoping the force behind it would erase the painful separation of nearly half a decade. Hoping the kisses they pressed to cheeks would help soothe wounded hearts.

_**--**_

**Two months later…**

**Announcer: The banner reads Team KaTo and Team ROXY End of Season Beach Bash and it's the last event of the surfing season, but…never fear, we'll all be back next year. But for now, let's catch up with the surfers who are in the water.**

**There's Brandon Harper catching some air. He's bounced back miraculously from that hand injury.**

**That's right Bob, and here comes Kyla Davies and Madison Duarte. They've turned into quite the speed duo out there. **

**Can't forget about ROXY, Jill. Check out Dina and Megan. They're definitely gonna be a force to reckon with next year. Those girls have talent.**

**Yes they do, but that all pales in comparison to the break out season of one Miss Spencer Carlin. Or should I say, soon to be, Mrs. Ashley Davies? **

**You are too bad Bob.**

**Nope, Jill, you're wrong. They're just too damn good.**

**--**

"Woo hoo! Go Penser!" Michelle whooped, bouncing on her mommy's lap.

Spencer made her way back over to the pitch, smiling at the both of them. "Lookin' good out there Blondie," Ashley said, not even trying to cover it up, even as her Mom and older sister shared a knowing look.

"Well, I did learn from the best," the blonde replied, leaning down to kiss her quickly, cool water droplets dripping onto Ashley's over heated skin…and Michelle's, who squealed in response, before going over to play with her grandpa.

"Hey guys," Aiden said, plopping down on the sand in front of them. "Chelsea says that she's got the place all fixed up for the party."

"Cool," Ashley said, nodding as she turned to Spencer. "Is your Mom still coming?"

"I dunno," Spencer said, scrunching up her face. "She's been kinda weird."

"But she wouldn't miss her only daughter's engagement party. That'd be kind of ludicrous," Aiden insisted.

"No," Raife objected, overhearing the conversation from a few feet away. "What's ludicrous is your own daughter refusing to let you walk her down the aisle."

"_Dad_," Ashley buried her toes in the sand as she whined. "I told you. I think it'll be weird since Mr. C is already gonna walk Spencer."

"She's just worried she's gonna trip and fall Mr. D," Spencer said, smiling cutely at the brunette as she pat her knee.

"Ah, now it all makes sense," he said, laughing along with them as Ashley tackled Spencer into the sand.

**--**

"So then I was like, 'touch her and you die man'," Brandon was saying, very animatedly to an audience which consisted of Madison, Glen, Dina, Tasha, Ricky, and Megan. "And I leapt forward, right? But before I could do anything I felt this sensation in my hand that just felt like someone was burning it from the inside out. And I look down, right? And my _fingers_ are hanging off."

"Ewww!!!" the girls squealed, well Tasha, Dina, and Megan. Madison, also a girl, didn't find it that disgusting and Ricky had a bullet hole of his own to brag on.

At least Aiden wasn't around. He'd probably whine about missing "all the action" again. All in all, it was a good decision to leave him behind to protect the others. Ricky couldn't have handled Gallo's henchmen alone.

"Take it from someone that was there, it wasn't that big of a deal," Madison said, effectively taking the wind out of his sails. "It barely grazed you."

"Is this your way of apologizing for shooting me? Because you didn't you know,"

"I have so. Several times. Just last night as a matter of fact," Madison drawled, twirling a finger through her hair.

Brandon blushed something fierce, pressing his lips together to conceal a smile. "Uh…uh, um…"

"Yeah, that's what I thought,"

"I can't believe that dude didn't kill you," Glen said, staring in awe at Megan and Dina. "Either of you. He was pretty unhinged."

"Uh, you think?" Tasha deadpanned, taking Ricky's hand in hers. "I'm just glad we're all okay."

"Speak for yourself," Brandon said. "I'm traumatized. I have to sleep with that thing," he added, pointing at Madison.

"Oh, you're going down Harper," she said, starting after him.

"Gotta catch me first," he yelled, running off playfully and getting tripped by Kyla.

"Thanks Ky," Madison said, jumping on him, ticking him mercilessly.

"Aw, man," he managed between giggles. "Ky, what gives?"

"I like her more," she smiled, sticking her tongue out at him before resuming her walk with Adam.

"It's a little strange how we've just fallen back into the swing of things," Adam commented, worry creasing his brow, but he quickly dismissed it. "But I'm not gonna worry about it."

"Maybe, after all that bullshit we can finally be a normal family. Although, I'm confused…are we Morgans or Davies?"

They stopped to think about it.

"Davies."

**--**

Paula Carlin marched up to the pitch just as Ashley was about to go hit the water.

"Spencer, I need to talk to you," the older blonde said, eyes set on her daughter.

"Oh shit,"

"Daddy," Michelle admonished with a slight frown.

"Daddy's sorry," Aiden apologized, and then retracted his earlier statement for a more age-appropriate one. "Oh…snap?"

"I'm gonna go on then," Ashley said, trying to extract herself from Spencer's now overly persistent grip a.k.a. death grip.

"No, Ashley. You should stay. You both should hear this," Paula insisted, gesturing for them both to take a seat. They did of course. Her sharp-shooting skills still fresh in everyone's memories. "Now, I know I've been distant ever since news of this engagement broke out. But I want you both to know that it hasn't been because of either of you. It's because of me." Paula ran a hand through her hair before falling into one of the beach chairs. "You see Spencer, your father and I had never had the perfect relationship. Far from it actually. But, with you kids around we'd always thought that never having time for each other was the main cause of that tension. I think I knew better, which is why I was so reluctant to let you or Glen leave. When you guys moved out, your father and I, we realized that we weren't right for one another, and it didn't take too long. I mean, I could count the number of times we-"

"Mom," Spencer interrupted, holding up her hands. "I understand. No need to go into details."

"Right," Paula agreed sheepishly and Ashley snorted. "So, after the divorce finalized I put myself back out there. Online, of course, because that's how most divorcees do it. And it was there that I met her."

Spencer looked behind her to where her mother was gazing seeing nothing. "Her. What? Her who?"

"Jill Bennet."

"Okay… So you met Jill Bennet…" Spencer prompted, not putting the pieces together.

"Uh…Spence," Ashley tapped her shoulder, already where Paula was driving to and back to bring Spencer along for the ride. "I think-"

Spencer scrunched up her forehead in thought, shaking her head back and forth. "What? Is she some kind of online date coordinator or something? I don't get-" Her eyes widened and she clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh my God."

"Now Spencer," Paula started, but Spencer cut her off with another loud gasp.

"Oh my God. Glen!" she yelled, and her brother looked over from his spot with the others.

"What?!"

Want a classic last line?

Well, here you go.

"Our mother's a carpet muncher!"

THE END.

…

"Jason? What are you doing here?"

The young man straightened out his blazer, quietly sitting across from the other man. "He's dead," was all he said, watching the other guy's face for recognition.

"Who's- what, uh, Junior?" was all the other man asked, staring idly at a framed photograph on his desk.

Jason merely nodded.

Fredo fingered a pen on his desk, anxious. "A name. Give me a name."

"Carlin."


End file.
